Hades' Covenant
by Angel Ren
Summary: When Allura attempts to free Romelle from Castle Doom, she finds Prince Lotor instead. Isolated far from her Voltron Force, Allura is made an offer she simply can't turn down. Lotor finally has everything he wants - or does he? He quickly realizes that Allura's heart will be his most difficult and trying conquest yet. (Lotor x Allura)
1. Pomegranate

**Hades' Covenant**

 **Chapter 1 - Pomegranate**

* * *

"Do. Not. Move," his words were low and threatening as his lips brushed against her ear. A firm hand pressed over her mouth to silence her, his body tight against hers.

Allura could barely move beneath his iron vice of a body and the strength with which he covered her mouth nearly cut off her air supply. She couldn't squirm, scream, or fight back. 'Terrified' was an understatement.

Tears budded in the corners of her eyes in panic as she stared openly up at Lotor, his body wrapped around hers, pressing her against the wall in the dimly lit Drule corridor. She only struggled as fiercely against him as she did to tame her rising hysteria.

"I mean it," he hissed dangerously at her as footsteps approached from behind. His scent clouded her mind as thoroughly as his body dominated her field of view.

"Lotor, what the hell are you doing," Zarkon's voice drawled out lazily from behind his son. Lotor pinned the princess with one last warning look – or was it… pleading? – before raising his head to look over at his father. His body still pressed into hers, effectively concealing her.

"Having a bit of fun at the moment, Father," he called out loudly, glaring over at the king.

"Save some for me," the king laughed darkly. She would have dropped to the ground in a cold faint if he hadn't been supporting her body completely. His hand on her arm squeezed tighter in response to the king's words.

"There are plenty of others for you," he commented dangerously. Somewhere in her haze of fear, a single ray of comfort brushed her at the venom in the prince's voice. Realizing that he did not intend to let Zarkon near her was a small relief. The prince was terrifying enough on his own.

"I thought I told you to keep your harem activities contained to your chambers," the aging monarch grumbled. Lotor grew stiffer as the footsteps came closer. "Which one is this one, anyway? I haven't noticed you spending time with your girls since you started chasing after that princess."

All Allura could see was Lotor; she couldn't see what was happening in the background. The statement Zarkon made resonated surprise in the back of her mind, but there were far more serious matters in front of her to contemplate it at the moment. Several strained seconds ticked by in silence. Another footstep behind them urged Lotor to shift his body slightly. A low rumble resonated from his chest that sounded suspiciously like an animalistic growl.

"I-" Lotor fumbled with an answer, his word half-spoken, half-snarled.

"Sire. I have something that requires your attention immediately." Allura recognized Haggar's voice instantly.

"What is it, witch?" Zarkon sounded more irritable than usual.

"A robeast for you to inspect. It's in my laboratory," she continued.

"That's what you call immediate? Very well," the king grumbled. One set of retreating footsteps preceded an exhale of relief from the prince, but he still did not move.

"You'll crush her if you keep doing that, you know," Haggar said softly. "I won't tell him. I just need to go find a robeast to show him now," she muttered. Lotor stepped back from Allura, his hands still firmly on her upper arm and over her mouth. Allura felt the blood return to her forearms as he put a step between them. Her palms still rested on his chest from her attempts to push him away before he had bodily crushed into her.

"Good work, Haggar," he said as the crone ambled off in the direction Zarkon had taken. He looked pensively after her for a minute to be certain both were gone before fixing his gaze on the princess.

"If he knows you're here, we'll _both_ end up in the Pit of Skulls. Is that clear?" He stared at her intensely as she tried to nod her head up and down under his grip. He sighed and took a second step back, releasing the hand over her mouth while still gripping her firmly by the arm. She let her palms drop to her sides and balled them into angry fists.

"What _are_ you doing here, anyway?" He looked over the slip of a girl as she squirmed against his hold on her.

"Let go," she instructed softly while trying to wretch her arm free.

"No, my sweet. We are going somewhere more private and I am going to learn why you are here," he said darkly. With a tug, he was moving down a hallway, hauling the princess behind him. She thrashed and struggled, but did not cry out. Allura knew there was no one in earshot that could - or would - help her.

Lotor grunted slightly in frustration as she fought him the entire length of the corridor. He paused in front of a door to unlock it. With a low oath, he pulled the door open and heaved the frustrating princess into the room, shutting the door and locking it with a keypad. Then, and only then, did he release her arm.

She sprang away from him like lightning, backing to the center of the room. Her left hand cradled her right bicep and rubbed it gently, trying to discourage the bruise that would likely appear. After a second, her eyes glanced around the room he had brought them to and her skin paled a few shades. In the center of the far wall, an enormous four-poster bed dominated the room. A plush ebony comforter draped over steel blue satin sheets and pillows, reeking of luxury. Black marble tile graced the floor and matching marble walls rose up around, framing an elegant fireplace.

Lotor calmly walked past her to the fireplace and touched a switch nearby, causing flames to spring to life and illuminate the dark room. He watched the fire for a moment before turning and fixing his gaze on her.

She flinched under the intensity of his look and self-consciously crossed her arms over her chest. Being around Lotor was discomforting. Being around him while alone was nerve-wracking. She had yet to come up with a word to describe the level of anxiety that being alone in his very bedchamber evoked from her. It was possible no such word existed.

He took the time to look over her closely for the first time since he crossed her path while she was infiltrating his castle. Allura had made it past two waves of guards, bypassed the throne room and had nearly made it to her target before she had the misfortune of being in the same hallway as he. Somehow, despite her sticking to the shadows and staying tucked out of sight, he had spotted her as if he had her pinned on radar. They had barely had a moment to exchange threats before he had covered her bodily. _Protected,_ her mind corrected her. He had _protected_ her from his father.

"What are you doing here?" His voice was calm but it was firm. He felt his temper swell when she just closed her eyes and tilted her chin up in response to his question. "Fine then," he drawled out dangerously. "Let's see if I can guess." He peeled off the wall near the fireplace and began pacing a slow, predatory circle around her.

Her eyes snapped open and she blushed brightly as he stalked her like a panther, slowly turning to maintain eye contact with him. His eyes roamed over her body shamelessly, drinking in every inch of her frame. Her muscles stiffened and her arms remained folded defiantly across her chest.

"I do like the outfit," he murmured appreciatively, commenting on her attire. Allura was not in her usual white and pink flight suit; she was dressed in combat fatigues consisting of black and grey. Baggy pants dwarfed her feminine figure, ending in a pair of black boots and a fitted black shirt. While she was unmistakable in his eyes, she was clearly attempting to dress for stealth.

When Allura continued to maintain silence, the prince's eyes narrowed dangerously. He paused in his stroll and stared openly at her. With the speed of a snake, he reached out and grasped hold of her wrist. Allura cried out in surprise as he shoved the long sleeves up her arm before reaching and doing the same with her other arm. Despite her struggling, Lotor pulled her in close and patted down her décolletage. She flushed red with embarrassment as he fondled her neckline before releasing her.

She sprung away, crossing her hands back over her chest in furious indignation.

"What in heaven-"

"You're not wearing any kind of communicator," he observed coldly. "You're dressed to hide within this place easily enough..." he trailed off, a sinister smirk on his lips. "I'd bet your team doesn't even know you're here, do they?"

"Of course they do! Keith is-"

"Keith would never let you do what you're doing. He's probably back on Arus, perhaps just now noticing that Blue Lion is even missing." He paused for effect, watching her skin pale slightly. "Am I wrong?"

Allura knew she hesitated a second too long. He was already smirking delightfully at her before she tried to deny his suspicion. She shook her head once, trying to convince the frightening prince that she had backup waiting in the wings.

"That still leaves one question unanswered," he continued, ignoring her insistence that the rest of the Voltron Force was nearby. " _Why_ are you here?"

Again, she met his mounting frustration with silence to rival a martyr. He growled and moved toward her swiftly.

"No matter. I have what I want, I don't require anything else," he said. She backed away as he stalked toward her and it took only a matter of seconds before he caught her and she was falling onto her back on the soft bed, his body hovering over her.

"Uhg, get off of me!" She grunted at him, struggling to wretch her body free as he pinned her to the soft mattress.

"Why would I give up what I want?"

She cried out in frustration as he lowered his face toward hers. She turned away, grimacing at his proximity.

"All you want is my body?"

"I'll have your love, too," he commented coldly.

" _Never,_ " she hissed out. Lotor's jaw ticked and he paused, hovering a few inches above her. "And you don't _have_ it, you're merely taking it by force," she commented darkly. She knew in the recesses of her soul that he was stronger than her and physically he could easily take anything he desired. Her words, however, seemed to startle him. The grasp on her wrists loosened and within a moment he had released her entirely, coming to stand again.

Allura sat up on the bed, a bit dazed by his change of tactic, watching him pace across the room in front of the fireplace. He paused and removed his helmet and set it on the mantel. She watched with fascination as he ran his fingers through his hair briefly before continuing to contemplate the situation.

"Keith doesn't know what you're doing. No one knows you're here. It can't be a war effort, you'd need backup." He stopped and turned to look at her. "I'm offering you a chance to tell me. I could get you to talk, you know. But I'd rather not resort to those methods…"

Her eyes widened slightly and she shook her head once. At her silence, Lotor stiffened.

"Very well. For each minute that you don't tell me what you want to know, I'll have a slave executed," he said.

"You wouldn't! You can't!" She reached her hand out toward him in blind panic, rising to her feet; the fear etched on her face gave away her weakness. He played his hand carefully and just shrugged, turning to the door to unlock it.

"It's Romelle!" Allura burst out into sobs behind him, covering her face in her hands. "I came to find her," she admitted, her shoulders sagging in defeat.

"Now that's more like it," he commented, turning back to face her.

"You're a monster," she accused, gathering herself back together and wiping her tears away with a sniffle. "They'll come for me, either way, you know."

He watched her with an eerie intensity. The silence that beat between felt like it lasted an eternity. Allura fidgeted restlessly, unable to stand still while he stared. His eyes were narrowed dangerously, and in the glimpses she tossed him over her shoulder, she could see the flashes of thought behind them as he contemplated something deeply.

"What," she muttered, unnerved at his silence. He exhaled slowly, but did not speak at first. He instead lowered himself languidly into an armchair, his eyes never leaving her.

"I'm going to make you an offer, Princess," he said slowly, carefully measuring his words as he spoke them. His voice strained slightly, as if he were taking great care in precisely what he said.

"I won't marry you," she snapped quickly.

"You haven't heard my terms yet," he said, one corner of his lips curling up as she jumped immediately to that conclusion.

"I can't imagine you would have anything that would ever make it agreeable," she said flatly. Her ice-blue eyes had returned to him and pinned him with the fire he relished.

"See," he began, pausing to lick his lips. He tore his eyes from hers for the first time and glanced down to watch his folded hands in his lap. "Nothing has been - or will be - announced formally until after the fact," Lotor continued. "But Zarkon will not be king much longer. And I seem to be in dire need of a queen."

The news stunned Allura so sharply that she sat backwards on the bed. Her fury melted from her face as surprise flooded her features. Lotor kept his face pointedly impassive as he looked back to her.

"Zarkon won't be king anymore?" Her uttered cadence was a breathy whisper.

"No. _I_ will be. Which means I will have autonomous authority over the entirety of the Drule Empire," he explained. He articulated each word slower than usual, carefully measuring her reaction. He watched with satisfaction as Allura's eyes widened - she realized where he was going. "I'll give you Romelle." He paused for effect. "I'll free all the slaves." Another pause as she chewed her bottom lip. He felt a twinge of delight as she struggled to keep her face blank but failed miserably. "Arus will never be invaded again."

She shot him a glare, clearly torn over the carrot he was dangling.

"I don't believe you." Allura's blatant shock wore off and she stared at him dubiously. Lotor's carefully concealed expression broke and he grinned lethally at her.

"I mean it. All that, for you. What do you say, my dear?"

"Never."

"You would trade all of that peace you claim to champion for… simply because of pride?"

Allura scowled at him. Her cheeks bloomed crimson at the insinuation that it was her pride stopping her. Her eyes both enticed and frustrated him; they were honed like frosty daggers on him, befitting a warrior in combat. While he knew she was rapidly contemplating a variety of aspects and approaches to the situation, he couldn't see past the frigid shields his sweet warrior brought to their battlefield.

"And what of me, then? A prize on a shelf? Locked in a tower?" Lotor masked his delight that she was even entertaining his offer.

"Of course not. You'd be by my side - ruling an empire," he responded.

"And what of Arus?" Her gaze never wavered; only her words betrayed her line of thinking.

"Completely under your control and reign, if you prefer. You could come and go as you please. I fancy a queen, not a hostage." Lotor was ready with an answer to every question she could throw his way. He had played the scene over in his mind for years. The only missing leverage he needed was the authority of his father's throne. Until then, he only had pale attempts to snare her through other means.

"I could be on Arus?" Her eyes lit up at the mention of it, the first crack in her barrier.

"At least half your time would be spent in Castle Doom. You would be ruling over the Drule Empire as well, you know. But if you so chose, the other part of the time you could be on Arus. You could spend half a year there, half here... or come and go between the two as you saw fit." He didn't necessarily like the concessions he was making for her, as he was greedy and wanted all of her at all times, but he knew damn well his price would need to be high to even engage her in a conversation about it to begin with.

She drew her knees up to her chest and seriously contemplated the offer in front of her. Allura's heart raced and she felt bile rise in her throat at the prospect of wedding the evil prince. But if he were being truthful in all he promised...

"How do I know you will keep your word?" She glared at him.

"Have I ever lied to you?"

"Of course you have! All the time!"

"Name one time," he challenged her. Allura parted her lips to spout off the list of every deceptive act he committed, but she froze. Prince Lotor had been cruel, he had been conniving and manipulative, he had even been brutal and aggressive. But she could think of no moment he had ever been deceptive toward her. Though brutish and overbearing, he had never made any pretense of his intentions or desires. She shut her mouth, glaring at him in response. He just smiled sweetly at her, eliciting a shudder down her spine. In that moment, Allura decided his smile was more terrifying than his smirk.

"So what do you say, my dear? Will you be my bride and become the savior of the galaxy?"

She desperately wanted to tell him no. She wanted to scream and run away from the idea, but the prospect of not only ending the war against Arus but also having the platform to negotiate on behalf of other planets was too enticing to completely resist.

Seconds ticked into minutes, Allura's gaze locked on his. Neither flinched, neither wavered. She was challenging him to break - to admit it was a joke or that he would never keep his word. Her eyes devoured his as she searched for any hint of deception, any filament of dishonesty or betrayal.

She found none.

"You're serious." Her words belied more of her astonishment.

"I am. I've always been serious when it came to you."

Allura's heart raced as she ran the scenario through her head. Her eyes widened and her cheeks blushed.

"Romelle goes free."

"Done."

"So do all the slaves."

"Of course."

"Immediately. No twisting it to be twenty years from now-"

"They will be considered free-"

"-and safe from all harm," she added dangerously, her mind rushing to try and seal any loophole he could think of. Her words ran faster with impending anxiety the more she negotiated.

"-And safe from all harm," he repeated, his grin widening a little bit as she engaged him in negotiations. "-the moment we are wed."

"Arus is safe. No infiltration, it stays under my authority _only._ You will have no say in decisions made regarding its governance."

"Fine," he shrugged, continuing to watch her hungrily.

"No Voltron; it, too, stays under my control alone. The lions, their pilots, like the rest of my citizens, all safe from any harm."

"As long as they don't engage in any hostile acts or try and break our agreement by rescuing you or forcibly coming between us," he countered.

Allura stared at him thoughtfully, racking her brain for any way he could manipulate the situation to his advantage.

"Only marriage. That's all," she pinned him down.

"Well, it would be _nice_ if you stopped slapping me every time you saw me," he muttered dryly. The length of detail that she was going to would have been irritating if she weren't on the verge of agreeing.

"I won't be locked in a tower or thrown in a dungeon."

"Too cliché," he said absentmindedly. When she continued to stare at him, he gave her the concrete answer she was digging for. "No. Free roam of the castle, planet, empire and galaxy - freedom to travel between Arus and Doom as you pleased, anywhere you like, as long as you spent roughly half the time in total here. I won't have you marrying me then running back to Arus to ignore your husband. Likewise, if you're on Arus, I have rights to visit," he pressed back.

Allura scowled.

"But you're not taking over my authority. My people need me to lead them-"

"Just to visit," he confirmed. "I can only go so long without seeing your smile," he replied lazily with a grin. Allura's lips only twitched in response and stayed taut. She finally broke the staring contest between them as she reached to pinch the bridge of her nose.

"Stars above, am I actually considering this," she muttered to herself.

He waited. Never before had the impulsive prince ever felt such a strong call to patience. The sensation was foreign to him, but never had it felt so critical. He simply watched her in fascination, reading the tension on her features as her mind warred with her heart.

"When I say no harm, I mean direct _and_ indirect - you can't cause someone else to go start a war or enslave them, either!" Allura glanced up to glare at him.

"You're really focused on that," he commented, more to himself as he realized one of the quirks of the princess.

"Of course I am! Your concern is that I'll agree to this and then run off away from you - my concern is that I'll give up everything for noth-" She paused mid-sentence as he rose from the chair and strode toward her, stopping in front of her on the bed. Allura gasped as he did something he had never done to her before.

He kneeled.

"Allura. I swear on my life that no harm, direct or indirect, will come to your people - including your Voltron Force - nor any of the other planets. The Drule Empire will _protect_ them if needed from other invaders. The slaves will be released, including your cousin. Arus stays in your control, along with Voltron. All in exchange for your wedding vows. Do we have an arrangement?"

The princess was unable to hold back the unfathomable shock any longer. Her lips parted and her eyes widened while he patiently stared into her eyes.

"I..." Even as she trailed off, at a loss for words, he still waited. Moments became minutes and his muscles grew stiff from the floor while the thoughts flew through her mind, calculating, planning and weighing. After a small eternity, she breathed an answer she never thought possible.

"Yes."

Lotor took her hand into his and pressed her fingertips to his lips to seal the agreement.

"Excellent."

* * *

 **New story! Yay! Thank you for reading it all the way through~ Feel free to leave feedback, even if you hate it. It helps me write better in the future! (Bonus points if you get the chapter name meaning. ;) )**


	2. Preparations

**Chapter 2 - Preparations**

* * *

Lotor slowly stood back to his full height and glanced down to the princess sitting so delicately on the edge of his bed. It was a place he had longed to get her for years and she now sat there willingly before him. Her tundra-colored eyes were wide in shock at the words she had just uttered.

"Absolutely excellent," he reaffirmed, releasing her hand at last. She inhaled a trembling breath and he couldn't be sure if she were about to scream or burst into tears. To her credit, her lips pressed together tightly and she just stared up at him stoically instead.

"Well then," she whispered. "What now?" The shudder on her breath was unmistakable, but she did not give in to the hysteria lurking just under her surface. He could see the waves of panic rolling through her, and in some dark recess of his heart, he was concerned for her mental stability.

"You shall get some rest while I make some arrangements," he said decisively. Her skin paled another shade. "I'll have some food brought up."

"You said I wasn't a prisoner!" The shrill tone to her voice struck him oddly – the princess was truly in a state of pure panic. It was an emotion he had not seen from her before. He had witnessed her fury, her fear and her determination. Never before had he seen her unadulterated terror.

"You are correct, and you are not a prisoner, my sweet. But until everything is in place, it is safer – for you – to remain here."

Allura couldn't decide whether to scream at the man, swing her fist or break down into sobs. She was certain her expression was ridiculous as it tried to account for her spectrum of emotions at what was happening.

"I…" She swallowed, watching his cold face, desperate for anything. A defense mechanism flipped on inside her and Allura felt a chilling strength flood her veins as her adrenaline died. Her lips pressed together thinly and she stared at him coldly. "As you wish," she said monotonously.

Lotor took a step back, unused to the coldness from the princess. She turned her gaze away from him and studied a nearby wall resolutely.

"Allura?"

"Make the necessary arrangements, please. I await further instructions," she continued, not looking toward him. Lotor reeled from the terrifying reaction she had. He stood in the center of the room staring at her, but she refused to meet his gaze.

"I'll be in touch with you soon," he supplied.

"Of course."

"You need to stay here," he added intentionally, trying to arouse her emotions again. Anger, fear, or even hatred would have been preferable reactions to the emotionless one she was presenting him.

"I understand."

Lotor remained where he was standing for a minute longer. With reticence, he turned to the door. He saw himself out, the door closing behind him. He lingered to test that it locked securely when he heard her.

She wept. The heart-wrenching sobs from the safety of the empty room caught him by surprise. He shook his head once. Allura would learn to love him. Fear was natural for change, he reasoned. She just needed time. Lotor peeled himself away from the door and went to make the formal announcement to his father.

* * *

"What does my incompetent son need now," Zarkon's voice echoed around the empty throne room.

"I came to announce that I have found a suitable queen. We shall be wed at the same time of the coronation in two days," he said. The evil smirk on Lotor's face was unmistakable.

"Oh? And here I thought you'd never stop chasing that princess of yours," he muttered from his throne as he twirled the golden scepter thoughtfully.

"I didn't." Lotor's grin grew wider as his father paused and just regarded him.

"Are you telling me that my inept son actually managed to get her?" Lotor threw his head back and released a deep-throated, evil laugh at Zarkon's response.

"Yes, my father. Allura has agreed – of her own free will, too – to become my bride and queen."

"And in what manner have you torn my Empire apart in effort to win her hand? You're not even king yet and I can't imagine what all you've destroyed," Zarkon muttered dangerously, quickly regretting his decision to pass the throne.

"Nothing of consequence," he replied smoothly, anticipating the wariness from the old man. "I gave her a guarantee of Arus' safety – her main concern. She couldn't pass up the chance," he explained, chuckling darkly. "A small concession on our part – there are many other planets to plunder, but no other as fair as she."

Zarkon studied the prince closely, as if he didn't believe him.

"And that's all? What about Voltron?"

Lotor rolled his eyes at his father before crossing his arms over his chest.

"I succeeded, didn't I? At any rate, we will need to prepare a wedding ceremony to happen during the coronation. Wedding before or after the crown?"

Zarkon stayed quiet a moment longer, lingering on the barter his son had made. He gave up on trying to get a concrete assurance that Lotor hadn't completely destroyed the Empire in his obsession with the princess.

"Wed her first, get that out of the way before her friends come for her. The crowning ceremony can follow right after. She'll need one too, if she is to be your queen," he added.

Lotor looked surprised – he hadn't considered a part of the coronation for her.

"You're correct, Father. I'll look into it. I haven't made any announcements yet – I don't want to draw her friends to us too soon. The ceremony is still quiet and small, correct?"

"We don't need our enemies to know there will be a transition of power before it is concluded," the king explained. "I like a good party as much as you, my son, but we do need to use a little discretion in this case to insure our strength. …You really didn't give away anything other than Arus?"

Lotor's face stayed impassive when his father circled back in an obvious effort to catch him off-guard and reveal a fallacy.

"Father, please." Lotor had no intention of explaining to his father about the rest of his barter with the fair princess. The coronation and wedding would happen before the slaves were freed. After the coronation, his father wouldn't have a say in the matter any longer.

He turned and walked out of the throne room, leaving the suspicious king scowling behind him.

* * *

"Two days, Sire? The coronation was slated for two weeks!" The Drule woman eyed the prince warily. "I don't think I can possibly prepare the slave girls in time for that, much less get everything decorated."

"Nevermind the girls," he said, eyeing his event planner critically. "Just the bare essentials of the ceremony are needed. Also, I need you to add a wedding beforehand and procure a queen's crown for my bride."

" _You what!_ " The hot-tempered planner just stared incredulously at the prince. "You're getting _married_ now too?"

He flashed her an appreciative, fanged smirk.

"As it turns out, yes."

The silence that dropped between the over-stressed party planner and the prince who just threw a wrench into her plans was heavy.

"So you want me to plan, coordinate and execute a wedding-"

"Yes."

"- _and_ a coronation-"

"Of course," he grinned at her.

"-in two days' time. Just to be clear," she said slowly, staring at him.

"That is correct, Selna. I have faith in you. Forget the slave girls or the processions, we just need this ceremony to be swift and proper," he added. He cringed inwardly at the thought of Allura's reaction to his dancing girls at their wedding.

"Anything _else_ I should know about? A funeral, perhaps?" The irate female quirked an eyebrow at her unpredictable ruler. There were few in his inner circle that Lotor tolerated anything less than absolute servitude from. Selna was one of them.

"That will be all for now," he said as he turned on heel, eager to get back to his bride-to-be. Selna huffed slightly, irritated by her workload increase as he strode back to his chambers.

Lotor paused outside the locked door to his room to take a deep breath. He listened. There was no sound from within. He hesitated a moment, straining his impeccable hearing to catch even a sound of her.

It was silent.

Lotor grew concerned that she was either injured or had escaped and quickly keyed the door open. The prince half-expected to have something thrown at him as he entered, but he was met with no such hostility. A first-order scan of the room revealed the princess was gone, and with a dark curse he began searching more closely in an effort to discover how.

He froze. Lotor's furious eyes fell upon Allura's body. She had managed to claw at some of the heavy furniture in the room and was curled up behind an askew dresser. His anger melted as quickly as he knelt down to her sleeping form.

Dried tear streaks shimmered in the dim lighting as she breathed slowly. Lotor reached in and tenderly eased her fragile frame into his arms and lifted her from her place of safety. She stirred only slightly while he carried her to the bed and settled her onto the mattress.

After making quick work of her combat boots, he pulled the covers over her and stepped back. Allura's soft skin was near-translucent from stress, her cheekbones taught and her lips dry. Beads from the last of her tears still clung to her thick lashes as the trails dried on her face.

It was a fairly easy deduction to the crown prince that she had fallen asleep while crying, but the dresser surprised him. He walked back to where he had plucked her from and noticed the deep gouges in the heavy furniture, as if she had desperately clawed at it with all her strength. He frowned. She had sought the closest place to refuge she could find and expended all her strength to acquire it.

He tossed one last look back to her as she lay dwarfed by his bed. He contemplated his next move carefully before moving to the door. He left the bedchamber, the door closing behind him. He didn't bother locking it this time – he doubted Allura would be awake anytime soon. The amount of energy she had liquidated in her torrent of emotions had completely exhausted anything she had left.

He moved down the hallway, mentally ticking off his lengthy list. The wedding was an unexpected surprise development that would have his staff scrambling. _Worth it._ He knew he was straining their ability by moving the date forward two weeks, but he was not troubled by it. His only concern at the moment was Allura herself.

Lotor pushed open the door to his private entertainment room and stalked toward the smaller throne sitting on a pedestal. At his entrance, all of the precariously-clad girls jumped up and began dancing for him as they had many times before. Two women approached him with a vessel of wine and a glass to offer him a drink. He eagerly accepted the beverage and downed the drink quickly. The woman with the bottle poured another and the slave who had brought the glass turned to leave them.

"You, wait!" He reached out and grasped the girl's wrist. She gasped in surprise, turning around to stare at the prince, eyes wide with fear. "I have a special job for you." The slave trembled delightfully in his grasp as he drew the pretty girl toward him. Lotor's 'special requests' were often quite licentious. "Come with me."

She offered no resistance as her lord led her down the hallway. She herself had never been chosen for one of the prince's personal escapades, but she had heard enough from the other girls to be sheet-white at the prospect. Why he had chosen her, she couldn't fathom. His preference had always been for the blonde-haired and blue-eyed slaves. Mia's long, brunette hair had marked her as unfavorable in that category, much to her relief.

He stopped them outside a door and he stayed still. The way his head tilted toward the door, he appeared to be listening.

"My lord?" She shirked back from the fearsome prince when he looked down at her with a dangerous intensity. She whimpered as his grip on her wrist tightened painfully. After waiting a moment he opened the door carefully and peered inside. His tense shoulders relaxed slightly as he saw the golden princess still curled up in his bed where he had left her.

Nudging the door open all the way, he dragged the young girl in behind him.

"I want you to take care of her," he instructed carefully. Mia's eyes widened in surprise at the obscure request from the prince. He continued as the shock registered on her face. "That's Princess Allura of Arus. She's to be my bride soon. See that she eats, bathes and has proper clothing befitting a queen. Food will be brought up shortly. Understood?"

Mia hesitated and nodded once, her green eyes wide. The prince released her wrist and the slave wandered into the room.

"Let her rest for now. Once she's awake, you are to care for her as needed. Should you do your job well, I may release you from your binds," he added cryptically. He smirked at the slender girl as she gasped. With a last, troubled glance to Allura, he vacated his bedroom, locking the door behind him. There were still far too many things to do in such a short amount of time.

* * *

 **I'm not terribly fond of this chapter, but it needed to be done. There was some information that needed to be revealed this way, and you can expect more action in upcoming chapters.**


	3. Perseverance

**Chapter 3 - Perseverance**

* * *

 _Running. She was running down a long, dark corridor. She couldn't see the end stretched in front of her. Allura felt her breath run out as she pushed her body to keep moving forward. Her lungs burned, her legs felt like fire. Every time she felt like she would collapse, she glanced over her shoulder._

 _King Zarkon was never far behind, and the adrenaline that flooded her veins renewed her determination to keep fleeing. Every so often, she passed a candle on the wall that created a very dim, hazy atmosphere. Allura couldn't tell if the endless hall was cold or not - her muscles burned from the strain to push forward._

 _Her toe caught and she stumbled forward. The lethal laughter that echoed off the walls as she crashed to the stone floor elicited a scream from her lips. His twisted hands grabbed her by the shoulders as she howled in terror. Allura felt her fingertips dig into the stone desperately as his grasp closed in on her. She felt her body begin to lift off the floor as he pulled her toward him, despite her screams._

 _"Miss, Miss!"_

Allura's eyes fluttered open and she sat up with a painful intake of air. She looked slowly around the room in a daze as memories trickled back to her. Lotor, her arrangement... her situation. She swallowed apprehensively as she noticed the plush bed.

"Miss?"

Her eyes cut to the only other person in the room, and Allura blinked dumbly before recognizing what was happening.

"I... who are you? You're human," she breathed, as she felt the adrenaline begin to drain from her body. She glanced down and quickly noticed that her clothes were soaked in sweat and both the fabric and bed linens clung to her. Another exhale, she lifted her hands from her lap and watched them tremble. Reaching up, she pushed the damp hair that had come free from her braid out of her face.

"My name is Mia, Princess," the brunette said, watching the trembling woman closely as she eased down on the edge of the bed. "Here, have some water," she offered a large chalice toward the prince's new fiancée.

Allura froze as she looked at the large vessel in front of her. The ostentatious ornamentation on it was clearly Drule and served as a reminder of her situation. With a resigned sigh she reached forward and took it in both hands. With her unsteady state, she wasn't certain she could hold the oversized cup with just one hand. Allura rested it in her lap and stared down into the pool of crystal clear water. Amidst the stillness, she looked back at her own reflection. Pale skin and puffy-eyes stared back at her. Allura frowned.

She looked up slowly and stared at Mia.

"This is not me. I will be strong for my people," she murmured before looking back to the cup and drinking deeply from the water before setting it aside. "Thank you for your kindness," she added, looking to the wary girl sitting across from her. The slave only bobbed her head and went to the wardrobe nearby, pulling open the doors.

"His Majesty had some finery brought up for you while you were resting. Dinner is being prepared," she added as she withdrew a gown and presented it to the future queen. Allura crinkled her nose at the black and gold garment presented to her.

"It won't fit me anyway, not if it was tailored to fit a-"

"No Miss, they were made for _you_ ," Mia insisted, holding up a second gown for her inspection. It was white and gold and shimmered in the firelight.

"He... had gowns made to fit me? In so short of time?" She nodded thoughtfully at the one held up and the young woman set it aside before holding up a black and red one. Allura quickly ruled that one out with a wave of her hand.

"Not just today. He's had them for a while, if I understand correctly," Mia explained as she brandished a fourth gown of cream and sky blue. Allura nodded appreciatively and a second option was set aside.

Allura startled, struck at the thought Lotor had had gowns made that fit her. _How arrogant,_ she thought with a grimace. _He just assumed that eventually I would... ...or he just knew,_ her thoughts turned dry as she realized that regardless, he had been correct in his planning. The anger at his presumptuousness depleted nearly as quickly as it had risen. She glanced up as Mia brandished a pink and gold gown. Allura looked stunned.

"That one, please," she murmured, floored by the thoughtful color choice in his requests. Mia nodded and hung it nearby.

"Would you like to bathe, Miss? I'll draw a bath if you'd like," she offered.

"I... that would be lovely, but I can... do it myself..." she trailed off, as no more than halfway through the sentence, Mia was opening the door to the grandiose bath and starting the tap. Allura glanced nervously to the locked door to the bedchambers. Did she dare undress?

The spacious spa-like chamber began filling with a luxurious steam that made even Allura relax a little. She peeled the plastered sheet off of her and rose to her feet gingerly. Her body still felt weak.

"How long was I asleep?" She called to her young attendant as she moved toward the mirror on the dresser. She stared at the heavy piece of furniture against the wall, the black marble glinting in the firelight.

"I thought…" she shook her head once to clear her mind. Her memories were jumbling with her dreams, all too horrifying to properly process. Out of curiosity, Allura peeked at the side of the rich piece and gasped as she saw scratches in the marble. She looked down to her hands quickly and her eyes widened at the chipped, snagged and broken fingernails on her hands. She tucked her fingers into fists and exhaled.

The more she reflected on the last few hours, the more her concern rose.

"About three and a half hours, Miss," Mia replied from the bathroom. Allura's eyes widened further and she began pacing in a slow circle in the center of the room.

"So long?" She shot a worried look toward Mia as she paused in her tracks.

"His Majesty told me to let you rest as long as you needed," Mia explained. "I apologize for waking you, but when you started screaming in your sleep, I grew frightened."

"Don't trouble yourself over it, I'm pleased that you did," Allura replied with a shudder. Ghosts of the dream came to her mind and she resumed her pacing.

"Your bath is ready when you are."

Allura eyed the locked door warily before looking back to the inviting bath. With yet another exhale – her new tool to calm herself, she looked to her sweat-soaked clothes and decided to throw caution to the wind. After all the reckless decisions she had made recently, bathing seemed fairly safe in comparison.

As she stepped into the massive bathroom, Mia went to work helping the young princess undress. Allura blushed brightly and stepped away.

"It's alright, Mia, I… I can do this myself," she stammered.

"Are you certain?"

Allura nodded in response.

"Thank you for your assistance," she added.

Mia bowed and pointed out where the towels, robes, and other bath amenities were located near the basin.

"Please use whatever you like," she explained as she left the bathroom to give the woman her privacy. She watched as Allura closed the door to the bathroom before sitting down on the edge of the bed to wait.

* * *

Allura turned away from the heavy door and eyed the deep-seated, spa-sized bath. Mia had filled the black basin with bubbling water. As she eyed the steam rolling off, the princess quickly realized how badly she wanted to be in the water.

After making quick work of her sweat-laden clothing, she carefully eased herself into the gentle water. The basin was large enough to hold several people. With a sickening feeling, Allura realized that it probably had. Regularly.

 _Hold yourself together,_ she reminded herself as her panic began to rise again. _This is what is best for your planet, and if you don't manage this perfectly, you'll lose them, too._ She grimaced and forced herself to take a deep breath. Her fluttering heart calmed to a semi-normal rhythm. She balled her hands into fists and forced one more exhale out before easing her back against the wall as the water lapped at her shoulders.

"This is what it means to be a leader," she said softly. "You are a servant to your people. They will always come first," she reaffirmed before allowing herself to fully settle into the water. The reminder of her people gave her strength. _I can endure anything if it keeps them safe._

The slightest hint of a smile touched at her lips for the first time as she nodded resolutely. Allura reached up fumbled with the knotted braid of hair. With a grunt of frustration, the locks tore free from their tussled confines and fell around her. Ducking under water, she ran her fingers through her hair to loosen the knots.

"Goodness, I must have really tossed and turned to do this," she muttered after she surfaced and continued to paw at the hair. Satisfied with most of the knots undone, she proceeded to bathe with the luxurious bath products. The items set out for her were decidedly feminine and appeared otherwise unused. Allura found a strange relief that she wasn't handling something than had been used by another woman. She froze in her motions as a stunning realization struck her. _I'd… …I think I would rather use something of Lotor's than one of his… females'…_ She stared dumbly at the wall across the room from her while her mind failed to process the absurdity of the thought.

"How strange," she murmured to herself as the shock wore off and she returned to her ministrations.

After several minutes of washing and just soaking, Allura finally decided she was finished. Rising from the bath, she stepped carefully over the edge and onto the smooth floor. She toweled off with the large white towel plucked from the vanity before crawling into a plush robe that dwarfed her small, human body. Once certain the belt was tied snugly, the princess took a deep breath and looked toward the door.

 _You can do this. Just think of Arus,_ she encouraged herself. She reached for the door, only to freeze as she heard murmuring on the other side. Her recently acquired courage waned sharply as she recognized the deep tone of Lotor's voice.

She leapt back from the door as if it had shocked her.

"I can't, I can't…" She murmured to herself, shaking her head as her fear escalated. "I can't go out there." Tears budded in the corners of her eyes.

 _He could have marched right on in,_ she reminded herself, as if it would encourage her bravery. _But I'm not dressed!_ There was simply no end to the level of indecency she was experiencing with the man. First his castle, then his bedchambers. _I will NOT go out in front of him in a mere bath robe._

"I don't have much dignity left, but that doesn't mean I'll just throw the rest away," she muttered and began pacing around the bathroom.

A knock at the door stopped her in her tracks.

"Miss? Is everything alright? You've been in there a while. Do you need anything?"

"I'm fine, thank you!" Allura called loudly. She winced as her voice trembled. When the handle on the door turned, Allura flew across the room to stop it. The door opened a crack and Mia stuck her head in just as Allura arrived.

"Oh, you're finished," she said. Allura peered around the girl to study the room. The prince was nowhere in sight. She exhaled in relief and let the door swing open the rest of the way.

"Yes," she admitted sheepishly.

"How long have you been finished?"

"Not long," she said uncomfortably as Mia led the way out of the bathroom and gestured for Allura to take a seat on the bed. She settled in behind her and promptly began to gently untangle and brush out her wet hair. "I just… I thought I had heard…"

"Oh, His Majesty was here. He was asking about your condition," Mia informed her. Allura felt her heart stutter in fear.

"Oh dear," she murmured breathlessly.

"He wanted to know if you had awakened yet. He left to send for dinner for you," she explained. Allura wasn't certain she could eat anything with the way her stomach kept knotting itself.

"He really shouldn't bother," she murmured aloud. "I'm not hungry."

"Oh but you must eat! It's been too long since your last meal and your body is weakened. You need your strength!"

 _Arus needs my strength._ The recurring mantra of her planet once more renewed her fortitude.

"Very well," she said with a shaky sigh. Mia finished combing through Allura's locks and the princess sifted her fingers through them. "Thank you, it's a relief to have it clean and free of knots."

"Shall we?" Mia had moved from the bed and taken the pink and gold gown from where it was hanging. "I'm sure you would feel more comfortable in something like this," she added. Allura nodded and rose from the bed. "I can either assist you, Miss, or I can turn my back, if you prefer."

"I can do this myself," she said.

"As you command." Mia laid the gown out on the bed before going to a dresser drawer and withdrawing proper undergarments.

"I… I'm… I can't use those. That's a line I can't cross." Allura shook her head and walked back into the bathroom to retrieve her own clothes. She folded the fatigues up and set them near the boots by the bed and retained her own intimates.

"Oh don't worry, they're new!"

"I…" She stared at the girl, dumbstruck. "I can't… I can't be comfortable in intimates that _he_ picked out. I need my own," she explained. The bath products had been strange enough. The underclothing was simply a place she wasn't willing to go, and she certainly wasn't about to wear nothing beneath the gown. Her own would simply have to do until she managed to get back to Arus.

"As you wish," Mia replied, feeling confused. She shut the dresser drawer before turning to face a corner, granting the woman her privacy.

Allura stared at the silken fabric on the bed and the white lace in her hands before eyeing the door warily. She took a deep breath and flung off the robe. Never in her life had Allura dressed as quickly, terrified he would walk back in at any moment.

She pulled the dress on over her head and wiggled into it. The tailoring was immaculate. The gown truly had been crafted specifically for her. It settled into place around her body and as if it had been woven with her inside of it.

"Finished," she said after a moment of appreciative silence. Mia turned around and came to stand behind Allura, drawing the lacing in the back closed and tying it gently. She guided the princess to stand in front of a floor-length mirror while she worked with her hair. Her steady hands drew the golden locks back into an elegant braid before wrapping it up into a bun on top of her head. She pinned the bun into place with sapphire-crested pins, forming a halo of stones that matched her eyes.

As Mia finished, Allura turned sideways to inspect the rest of the gown. The pink satin shimmered in the flickering firelight and the golden fibers edging the entire garment appeared to radiate their own light in the dark room. The design of the gown was distinctly Drule with the way it hugged each curve carefully and left her shoulders completely bare. The coloring, however, shadowed her usual outfit of choice nearly perfectly.

Allura found herself begrudgingly impressed by his attention to detail. Why he had opted for the shape to be more form fitting and revealing than she was used to, she could easily hazard a guess.

"Are you displeased?" Mia's question startled the princess from her train of thought and she quickly realized she was scowling.

"Oh, no, I'm sorry. Thank you," she said. Allura turned in a circle. The gown was snug down to her hips and from there it flared out as she spun. The laces from the tie in the back also moved effortlessly, the quality of the fabric evident by its flow.

Snug sleeves ran from the top of her biceps to her forearms, leaving her shoulders and décolletage on display.

"Here, Miss," Mia continued as she brought out a parade of shoes for her to choose from.

 _How in the world does he know my size? It's a little frightening,_ she thought.

"The white flats will do," she murmured. _Easier to run in._ She stepped into the shoes and Mia nodded her approval.

"You look stunning, Miss," she said. "Can I do anything else for you?"

"I'm alright, thank you. And thank you for looking after me, and the bath and… everything," she finished with a weak smile. She eased herself down onto the edge of the bed and exhaled, once more trying to calm her nervousness.

Mia sat next to her and wordlessly took one of her hands into her lap and began to gently file at the tattered nails.

"You noticed those?" Allura was surprised at the woman's keen eye.

"His Majesty did," she replied, not lifting her eyes from her grooming. She missed the look of shock on the princess' face. Halfway through the first hand, a click at the door caused both girls to jump.

Allura felt her stomach twist into a painful knot as Lotor stepped into the room, his eyes instantly pinning her. Her breath froze in her lungs as she stared back. Mia went back to her diligent work of caring for her charge's hands. She trembled a little, relieved her master's eyes weren't on her. She took Allura's other hand and began working as the prince spoke.

"You're looking better," he commented. "Much better." His words had almost sounded sincere until his gaze dropped over the dress that hugged her like liquid. Allura's trepidation vanished as anger flooded her senses.

"You beast," she hissed at him. Mia's eyes widened at the tone she took with the man. When Lotor only threw his head back and laughed darkly, a shiver ran down the slave's spine.

"I try," he said once he had finished. He flashed a lethal grin at her that chilled her blood. "Am I really so bad though, Allura? I'm giving you everything you ever wanted! Peace for your people, a loving husband…"

She shot him a dark look back.

"The only thing you love is yourself," she snapped back.

"That's not true," he strode forward into the room, causing Mia to leap up and out of the way. Allura rose to her feet elegantly and stared him down with cold determination.

 _Do not run,_ she thought to herself. _Stay proud. For Arus._

He stopped directly in front of her and stared down into her defiant gaze. Their bodies didn't touch, but an electricity sparked in the air between them.

"I'll have your love yet, my dear," he said, reaching out to take her chin gently with one hand. His other hand came up to touch her cheek, and with a surprisingly gentle stroke on her face, he began to lean in.

Allura instantly pulled back, but when his hands became firm with her, she did the only thing she knew. She slapped him.

"Dammit, woman!" Lotor stumbled backward as the reprimand caught him by surprise. He glared at Allura's stoic body. After a beat of enraged silence passed between them, he exhaled. He looked to the slave cowering in the corner. "You're excused. Return to the others," he instructed coldly. He fixed his eyes back on Allura while he continued speaking. "I'd like some time alone with my new fiancée."

* * *

 **Hooray, a slightly more exciting chapter than the last one! As always, feedback is welcomed! Thank you for reading!**


	4. Predominance

**Chapter 4 - Predominance**

* * *

Lotor grinned as he watched Allura's expression change from fiery passion to cold terror.

Mia needed no further instructions as she bolted from the room, terrified of the brutal crown prince.

"I have nothing to say to you," she huffed, grasping for her courage as the door closed behind him. She crossed her arms over her chest and turned her nose up.

"Well, then we don't have to talk," he sauntered back toward her lazily, his eyes looking over the new gown she was wearing.

"Don't come near me!" Allura allowed her fear to present itself as she scooted back away from him. He took his time moving toward her, his eyes never leaving hers. Each stride was languid and relaxed as he approached, savoring the experience.

Allura's hip bumped the dresser and in her moment of surprise when she glanced down, Lotor pounced and covered the rest of the distance between them. By the time Allura looked back to him, he had both hands on the dresser on either side of her body, his face inches from hers.

She screamed.

The noise was a shrill howl of surprise and terror as she cowered away from him, trapped against the very piece of furniture she had tried to take shelter behind earlier. Even Lotor winced at the desperation in the noise before his hand came up to cover her mouth.

She twisted in his arms, frantically struggling to get away. Allura threw her weight in the direction of the hand on her mouth in an attempt to catapult her body through the opening he had created. He cursed as his grasp slipped and he reached out to grab her arm.

Allura felt the vice of a grip clamp down on her wrist and before she knew it, something solid connected with her back. She gasped for air as she slammed into the wall, wincing in pain. Her cry startled the prince and he loosened his hold on her slender joint. He did not, however, surrender his stance. Lotor continued to pin her to the wall bodily for the second time that day. Allura trembled as he stared down at her, chuckling softly as she tried to push him away.

"Please," she finally whimpered as his finger tucked under her chin and tilted her head up to look at him. Allura abandoned her dignity as she sniffled, tear streaks running down her face. Before he caught himself, he absentmindedly brushed them away with his thumb.

"It's time for dinner, Allura," he said at last, surprising the princess. She blinked, her oceanic eyes widening in shock. He stroked away the last of the tears to fall and took a step back.

"What," she whispered, her bottom lip still trembling.

"Dinner," he repeated. "I've decided we will dine on one of the balconies instead of in here. After all, you're not a prisoner," he said. He remained very close to her body, still studying her perfect features. "Come," he instructed, turning and making his way to the door.

Lotor didn't wait for Allura to follow him, his hand stayed on her wrist as he led her behind him. The princess was so dazed from her near-meltdown that she followed behind him without a protest. Her body felt numb as she trailed behind, glancing around the corridor.

Her stomach curled again at the sight of the torches on the wall. The lighting of the hallway reminded her of her most recent nightmare. She swallowed nervously, actually allowing Lotor to guide her. _Be strong. Be brave for Arus._ Releasing an exhale, she once again calmed her escalating heart rate.

"So, you weren't lying!"

Allura nearly wretched on the spot. _No. Not him._ Lotor paused and turned to look over his shoulder. Allura took one shaking breath to try and steady herself before she did the same. Sure as the dawn rose over Arus, Zarkon was ambling toward them. _Please no._ _Stars, no… p_ _lease don't try me this hard, I can't... there's only so much..._ She glanced up as Lotor made it a point to step forward, placing himself bodily between them. Allura had no intention of protesting his display of power in this case.

"What of it, Father?" Lotor's tone was clipped and tense. His body language belied the same sentiment. Allura doubted anyone could want to be anywhere else more than her in that moment, but the prince did seem to share her thoughts to a degree.

Zarkon stopped in front of the couple and peered around his son at the shielded princess.

"Finally decided to wed my idiot of a son, did you? He wore you down?"

Allura stayed quiet, watching the sovereign king of the Drule Empire as he judged her. _Be brave._

After a moment of resolute silence, Zarkon shrugged nonchalantly, untroubled by the princess' presence. He then tossed her a dangerous grin.

"Well, I will say this," he began carefully. Allura bristled but stayed silent. "Going this far to find peace for your people... Wouldn't your father just be _so proud_ of you right now?"

Allura's rage echoed off the hallway as Zarkon dragged Alfor into the cesspool she found herself trapped in.

"Don't you _dare_ speak of him, you monster!" Her scream startled both the Drules and Allura turned to Lotor in his moment of surprise. "Unhand me!" With a vicious yank to her arm, she wretched free, pushed off the prince and bolted down the hallway. Zarkons rancorous laughter echoed as she clamped her hands down over her ears, tears flowing freely down her cheeks unchecked. Her fury collided with her fear explosively inside her and for a terrifying moment, Allura wasn't sure what she was capable of. An unfamiliar lust for violence laced her veins.

"Father!" Lotor turned a frustrated look on the chuckling king.

"I'll admit son, she is a pretty piece of flesh, especially when she's fleeing," he commented darkly. With another shrug he turned away as Lotor started sprinting after the woman. "Idiot son of mine," Zarkon muttered as he headed back toward the throne room.

Allura careened around a corner in the hallway. She didn't know to where she was fleeing, but the last place she wanted to be was near Zarkon himself. When she collided bodily with someone, the princess cried out in both anger and fright, glancing up to see a surprised Cossack looking down at her.

"Beast!" She pushed off of him and continued running.

"What'd I do?" The befuddled man watched, stunned as Lotor skidded around the same corner in hot pursuit. "Sire, did I just see Princess-"

"Yes, yes you did," he called out as he continued sprinting after her, in no mood to explain to his subordinate what was afoot in the castle. He cursed her agility. When she had a head start and got out of the range of his physical grasp, she was difficult to catch.

Allura turned another corner and paused just briefly enough to try a set of double doors in the wall. They opened, revealing a library. She flung herself into the inviting room and quickly moved among the shelves to find a suitable hiding place to recover her strength.

Dropping down to her hands and knees, Allura found a dead-end corner hidden behind the shelves with a small table. She crawled under the table and drew her knees to her chest as she tightened down her control on her fear. Crying would only spoil her hiding place. Nestled among the shelves in a seemingly unused library, she _almost_ felt safe.

Until the door creaked as someone else entered.

She pressed her shoulder into the bookcase near her and curled up tighter. Allura closed her eyes and prayed. _Please let it not be Zarkon._ Footsteps echoed off the cold ground as someone moved slowly around the modestly-sized room. _Be strong. For Arus._

The mantra in her mind drastically lost its potency when she was staring down the warlord king himself. She curled up on the cold floor, arms over her head as she cowered pathetically under the table, holding her breath. The footsteps paused.

"Allura? It's me." It was the first time Lotor's voice had brought any sense of consolation to her. She gasped softly and unfolded, gently rising to her feet as he came around the corner at the sound of her breath. She looked toward him before looking away, a blush staining her cheeks.

"I should have controlled my temper," she murmured after a moment.

"He baited you intentionally."

"Still." She looked chagrined and flustered. "It shouldn't get to me."

"Come, dinner still awaits us." She glanced over to him. He didn't approach for once, but instead let her have her space. After another exhale to calm her nerves, she moved toward him cautiously.

He regarded her intensely for a moment before leading the way back out of the library. To his surprise, she followed him without complaint or request. Her demeanor was quiet, her rage subdued.

Wordlessly, he led the way down the corridor toward the balcony where their meal had been prepared. Only once did she stall hesitantly: as she left the library, she paused in the doorway to eye the hallway cautiously, as if worried Zarkon would leap out of the shadows for her. Patiently, he waited for her and within a moment's time, she had rejoined him, continuing to walk quietly at his side.

"Allura?" He looked down at her as he spoke, catching her eyes as she raised them to meet his. She didn't answer his question verbally, but the look he received from her told him he had her attention. "What are you thinking right now?"

She glanced back down the hallway they walked down and shrugged noncommittally. It was a fair answer; she had no actual thoughts at the moment and therefore no answer for him.

Lotor stopped walking and touched her shoulder gently. Allura paused in her tracks but kept her back to him.

"Talk to me," he instructed, frustrated when he didn't get his way. "What are you feeling right now?"

"Overwhelmed." She spun on heel to face him, her gown flaring around her calves as she did so. "There's only so much I can take, Lotor," she murmured. "I feel... exhausted."

He regarded her thoughtfully for a moment before speaking.

"My father has the unfortunate habit of turning up when you least want to see him."

"That's all the time for me," she murmured wearily.

He reached for her suddenly but stopped himself, instead settling to just nudge her elbow lightly with his hand.

"Let's eat, Allura. You need strength now," he said. He pushed open a door and led her out onto an open balcony. She froze in the doorway, looking at the covered table set out for them. Dishes and cups overflowed with food, but more remarkable was the sky overhead. With a gasp, she wandered toward the railing on the balcony and stared heavenward.

"It's... actually beautiful," she murmured in surprise. While Doom was covered in clouds nearly constantly, the intense magnetic field that shielded the planet interacted with the energy particles from the nearby solar wind. The resulting phenomenon was a rainbow-hued back lighting to the cacophonous storm clouds, reminiscent of the occasional aurora found on Arus.

Lotor's eyes never left her form as she braced against the railing, her eyes on the sky as her gown billowed in the breeze that danced around them.

"It's even more magnificent in the aftermath of a robeast defeat," he said after a moment. When Allura surprised him by turning to look his way suddenly, he continued. "The ions that the Blazing Sword of Voltron emits create even more colors in the sky," he elaborated. Her eyes were focused on him with an intensity he was unused to. Allura's body coiled with tension as the fabric she donned bustled around her, giving her an altogether powerful and ethereal glow in the starlight.

"I... never knew," she said after a moment. "We don't... usually linger."

"Don't you have the effect on Arus?"

She shook her head at his question, retiring from the railing to move toward the centrally-situated table. Lotor was at her side in a moment, drawing her chair out for her. She tossed him a confused look before settling in as he took his own seat across from her.

"Arus isn't nearly as magnetized as Doom. We have varying weather, sometimes clouds, other times clear skies. Once in a while, with the solar wind is right, we'll see the lights across the sky. But not ever like that," she added, glancing back to the pulsating lights. When Lotor didn't respond right away, she continued. "Arus has its own beauty though. On a clear night, there are thousands of stars in the sky overhead. A crisp breeze rolls across the plains..." she trailed off with a soft wince, remembering her home.

"You can go back, you know. Anytime after the ceremony," he reminded her gently as he started in on the food in front of him. Allura just cast a sad sigh and looked to the table for her own meal.

Magnificent servings circled her from salads to sirloin. Delicacies from different planets beckoned her taste but Allura did not feel hungry. She smiled forlornly at the food.

"Eat," he instructed. Allura frowned, sending a dangerous look his way. She felt a twinge of her anger flare at the order.

"I'm not hungry at the moment," she admitted, keeping a check on her temper.

"You still need to eat," he insisted. Allura's chilly gaze leveled him with a look and he paused. He shot her a dangerous grin in response. "I can't have my wife fainting at our wedding tomorrow, now can I?"

Allura blanched. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, struggling to calm her sudden panic.

"Beast," she whispered. "You said that on purpose."

"Don't be afraid, my dear."

"Easy for you to say," she muttered, shooting him a dangerous look. "You're not surrounded by enemies." When he tilted his head to the side in question, she elaborated. "Do you not think that any one person on this planet would want me dead?"

"Not I," he said after a moment. "And in less than a day's time, that will be the only answer that will matter. She looked down to her full plate in front of her and just shook her head, sitting daintily in her chair.

"They'll assassinate me," she said after another quiet moment. Lotor paused in his meal.

"Who would dare defy me?"

"It wouldn't matter. Once I'm dead, I'm gone. If they see me as a threat to the Empire, that will be all that matters. ...Lotor," she paused, chewing on her bottom lip for a moment. "What happens to our agreement if I'm... removed from the picture?"

"That's not possible," he grumbled, digging in to the fresh meat before him. Allura continued to stare out at the skyline, pondering her situation.

"But it could. Would you go to my planet and enslave my people if I'm not here to stop you?" Lotor paused at her question. His first response bubbled to his lips but he paused. He glanced across the table to the ashen-faced pillar of endurance before him. She deserved an honest answer.

He permitted himself to contemplate a reality that Allura did not exist in, and he felt his insides clench. A cold, dangerous fury washed over him.

"There would be hell to pay," he grumbled, spearing a piece of meat angrily. When she turned her sad eyes on him, he faltered.

"I'm taking a great risk on my own life, Lotor, to try and protect my planet. What happens if I'm wrong in all of this? What happens to them?" Her hands folded gently in front of her on the table.

"If… _If_ someone were clever enough, stupid enough, and skilled enough to attempt _and_ succeed at something like that… they would live out the remainder of their life in unrelenting agony. …And everything we spoke of would be honored on behalf of the Drule Empire," he added quietly.

Allura frowned slightly. She looked away from him to eye her hands in front of her as she toyed with her fingers. There was something strange in his words that she couldn't quite place. His tone was gravelly and off-setting. There was a raw emotion in it she wasn't used to hearing from the arrogant heir. He sounded almost... disturbed by that prospect.

"Thank you," she said, her fingertips touching delicately in front of her. After a second, she breathed out a sigh of relief. The noise that came from her sounded strangely like a giggle, but the disjointed articulation was hollow. Lotor eyed her carefully as she caught her breath. "I'm relieved to hear that."

"To hear that your people will still be safe if someone successfully murders you?" The horror that threaded his words didn't go unnoticed. Allura looked up to him coolly.

"Yes," she said. Her people were her pride and legacy. Even in death, their safety was her responsibility. "I don't ever want harm to come to them. That is my one wish," she finally admitted. She stared the dangerous prince down across the table as she uttered her deepest desire before him. His chiseled face remained unreadable, and Allura fidgeted nervously.

"They're that important to you, aren't they?" He put another bite of roasted flesh past his lips as he watched her closely.

She only nodded a little, still twisting her fingers together nervously in front of her. "My father's approach… and mine in his stead, has always been that the ruler serves the people, not the other way around. I am the one with the power to protect, to heal and to give. It should be my duty to do so," she murmured.

"That then would make it your responsibility to bear their burdens and strife," he said darkly. To his surprise, she just nodded.

"Exactly."

He frowned at her answer.

"That's not fair to you; you end up carrying the weight for something you had nothing to do with," he said slowly. Her approach to ruling surprised him. It was not a method he had been used to seeing before. The people were supposed to serve the king.

"And it is my honor, duty and pleasure to do so," she reiterated, sending him a sharp look. "To have enough strength to carry the weight of the planet means I am able to do what I need to."

"No one has that strength, Allura! If you carry it for them, you'll be crushed beneath it!"

"That remains to be seen." Her tone was cold as she referenced her current situation. "With humility, grace and integrity, Arus will rise again from the ruins," she murmured, turning her gaze away from him. "I can't imagine that you would understand what it's like to piece together a civilization brick by brick, and restore their faith in you."

The silence that hung between them as she finished her ramble was pregnant with tension. After a moment, Lotor abated it with a simple command.

"Eat."

She scowled and made a prominent display of plucking up a single piece of bread and biting off a piece in front of him. She set the rest of it down on her plate and stared at him as she swallowed.

"Happy?"

"I am _never_ satisfied," he articulated coldly, eliciting a shiver down her spine.

"Insatiable monster," she replied, glaring across the table at him. She paused in her fury and considering her next words carefully. "Does _anything_ please you?" She scowled at him.

"You," he replied simply. She glared dangerously across the table at him.

"Tomorrow then," she changed the subject slightly. It was obvious she wasn't going to get anywhere with him. "What's the plan?"

"It will be a relatively short ceremony on both counts. The wedding and the coronation," he explained as he consumed his meal. "It will have a small audience as well. Drule power transitions are swift. We cannot afford to let those who would intervene know that they are even happening before they happen." Allura stared at him with open surprise as he continued. "It will start mid-morning and conclude before noon. Once everything is set in stone, then the celebrations will begin and that may last into the late night," he explained.

"Is there anything I should know?"

He leveled her with a look from across the table and shook his head once.

"No, I've taken care of everything."

Allura trembled as she nodded once.

"Of course you have," she whispered, more to herself than anyone else. "I'm going to retire then for the night, so I can be awake for tomorrow." She rose from the table. There was a moment's hesitation as her strength stammered. She regained it and regally adjourned from the lavish meal.

Lotor looked over the table and noted she had only eaten the single bite from the piece of bread. He shook his head once.

 _Am I wrong?_ His mind fluttered irritatingly. _Of course not. I'm never wrong. I am on the brink of having everything I ever desired. She'll be fine. She will learn that there is no better place than at my side._

He frowned as he sipped his wine. He wanted to believe the sentiment, but even as he thought it, he wondered how true it was. He shook his head again to clear it. It didn't matter.

Tomorrow would change everything.

* * *

 **Yay update! As always, I'd love your feedback! Thank you for reading!**


	5. Promise

**Chapter 5 - Promise**

* * *

Allura sat somberly at the vanity. Her back erect and proud, she watched as Mia paid careful attention tucking her hair up into an elegant bun on her head. She was draped in, surprisingly, the white and pink gown she had chosen for herself the day before. Either it had been cleaned or there existed more than one as the linens were fresh.

The familiar sapphire pins laced her hair and held a gossamer veil up. The sheer fabric framed her visage and fell down around her hair and shoulders in an ethereal manner rather than cloak her face. She closed her eyes with a sigh. Marriage had never been something she had fantasized about as a young girl. She didn't have a dream wedding, a perfect husband or splendid gown planned out – but she couldn't say she ever expected to be sitting in Castle Doom while a young slave girl prepared her for the ceremony.

"Oh Miss, did the pin hurt you? I'm so sorry!" She leaned over and dabbed at the tears that formed in the corners of the princess' eyes.

"No, Mia, you're fine, thank you," Allura murmured, wiping away the moisture. Once the girl had finished with Allura's hair, she reached for the Arusian tiara. With slender grace, she placed the familiar ornament on her forehead. Allura stared at her reflection in the mirror. She looked so foreign. Her skin was too pale; her eyes too far away. The gown wasn't right – it was the correct color but the design was wrong.

Mia stepped back and looked over the woman thoughtfully.

"You look stunning, Miss," she said.

"Thank you," Allura replied dejectedly. Her voice cracked slightly as she continued to regard herself in the mirror. It had, ironically, been the first night she had slept with any degree of restfulness. Despite the morning's daunting task, Allura had slept without a nightmare. Lotor had miraculously left her alone once she had adjourned herself from dinner. Perhaps her fatigue had finally caught up with her and forced her into unconsciousness.

"The ceremony will begin soon, Miss," Mia said quietly from the doorway. "We should head to the staging area," she advised. Allura stared at her forlornly before nodding once. She rose from the vanity, her expression sorrowful. To her credit, she _did_ try to hide her lament behind a cold exterior, but the sadness was etched into her very being in a way that was impossible to hide entirely. She followed behind Mia, moving demurely down the hallway.

The brunette paused in front of a door and knocked. A guard opened it and upon seeing Allura, beckoned her inside. She acquiesced with no resistance. Inside the cozy parlor, a few sofas and chairs were strewn around as people involved in the ceremony prepared for it to begin. She paused at the sight of Lotor. He paced with uncharacteristic nervousness near a door at the far end of the room, dressed in formal black and gold. He bore his infamous skull belt and lazon sword, but everything else about his attire was polished and formal in a way she was unused to.

As the door clicked shut behind her with Mia's departure, Lotor froze. He seemed to hesitate a moment before turning to look right at her. Allura felt her breath hitch at the intensity in his gaze. With a few quick strides he was in front of her, his eyes roaming her like a man lost in the desert finding water.

She fidgeted uncomfortably.

"So here we are," she whispered for lack of anything else to say. He stared at her a moment longer before nodding once.

"It still surprises me," he admitted quietly.

"That makes two of us," she retorted dryly. She closed her eyes and looked away, letting her gaze sweep the room, lest she begin to cry in front of him. "So." She clasped her hands in front of her, wringing her fingers together. Her eyes washed over the dozen other serpentine eyes staring at her from various places in the parlor. She had managed to attain everyone's undivided attention, much to her discomfort. The Drule expressions were unreadable – Allura couldn't tell if they were angry, hateful or simply curious with her. She nibbled on her bottom lip, her nervousness threatening to bubble to the surface in the judgmental silence.

"Princess," a hand rested on her shoulder without warning and Allura spun around. Her eyes snapped up to look at the young woman staring down at her. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Selna, and I'll be guiding you both through today."

"Oh, alright…" Allura's voice was soft and weaker than she would have liked, but she had very little courage left in her. "I'm-"

"Don't worry, we _all_ know who you are." She flashed a grin at the girl and Allura flinched. If the gesture was meant to be comforting, the meaning was lost in the translation of the fanged smile. Selna gave the wary girl a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. "Here's how the next two hours are going to play out. Listen up, people!" She clapped her hands together suddenly her voice shifting from soft and gentle for the princess to louder and firm for the rest of the room. Allura shuffled away, grateful to be out of the center of attention. She dropped into an armchair to listen as it wasn't entirely outside the realm of possibility that her body might not support her weight if she remained standing.

The Drule organizer cast a thoughtful look to the future queen and another faint smile laced her lips before she continued.

"The wedding will be short. The bride and groom will go out together, arm in arm. Before the throne, they'll exchange vows and bands," she explained, producing two gold bracelets, one substantially larger than the other. Allura blinked at the Drulish custom. She thought it just as well; the idea of wearing Lotor's ring still sent chills down her spine.

"After that, the coronation will take place. It, too, will be brief. Once that is concluded, however, we'll open the doors, make the announcements, and the celebration will take place. That… could last well into the early morning hours," she finished. "Any questions? Everyone know their parts?"

"I…" Allura spoke up in the silence from her chair. "…I don't know what I'm supposed to do," she admitted with a blush. "Or say."

Selna just shook her head once.

"You have nothing to worry about. Any initiatives will be made by Prince Lotor, you need only follow his lead and stay by his side."

Allura just nodded mutely. She crossed her arms over her abdomen and hunched over, chewing on her bottom lip nervously.

"We begin in twenty, places everyone," she announced suddenly, causing Allura's stomach to lurch.

* * *

Never in her wildest nightmares had Allura ever imagined herself in the position she found herself in. Standing at Lotor's side, both her arms were draped over his forearm. The gossamer trails from her 'veil' trailed down her back in lieu of her hair that was pinned up elegantly. To her surprise, while her nails clenched him a bit more fiercely than intended, she did not tremble. Had Lotor not been the piece of stoic pride and strength beside her, she might have ended up a puddle.

They stood before the door, and Allura stared at it apprehensively. Everything was about to change.

"Are you ready?" He glanced down at her, a victorious grin flashing across his face at the sight of his bride on his arm. Allura continued to stare straight ahead.

"Let's go," she murmured. She would never be ready. Allura never met his eyes and never caught the flash of understanding behind them. Wordlessly, he turned and looked to the door as it began to open in front of them.

She exhaled. _Think of what you're doing. You are saving all of Arus. In this hour, you will write the golden future of your people as you make history. On the large scale of things, today is magnificent! Be strong. Be brave. Be_ _proud_ _,_ she thought. With renewed determination, she looked forward, her weakness dissolving. Today _was_ a magnificent day for Arus, and in the end, that was all that mattered. Her hands clenched at Lotor's sleeve as the door finished opening. Blinding light surprised her before her eyes adjusted from the dimly lit room.

The throne room before them was not nearly as populated as she would have anticipated. Her eyes skimmed the audience quickly. Drules stood in handfuls, all eyes focused on her. She recognized some of the faces from notoriety – some of the most influential and powerful planetary leaders had gathered for the coronation. She doubted they had come for the wedding.

Sweeping her gaze across the floor, her breathing hitched as Lotor began to lead them toward the base of the throne. Upon the mountain of stairs, Zarkon stood regally, watching her with an eerie intensity. She met his gaze with an equally calculated coolness, giving no hint of her fear or alarm. At his right, Haggar hovered, and Blue Cat was not far from his mistress.

 _Surrounded by my enemies,_ she thought. She chanced her first glance to Lotor, startled by the realization that of all the people she found herself surrounded with, _he_ was the most likely to be her ally.

Zarkon made his way down the throne path toward where the couple was headed. He paused a few steps from the bottom as Lotor brought her to a stop before him.

"And here we find ourselves," Zarkon announced to the room. "My son has finally taken a queen. …I would bet many of you lost a wager that he would ever get this one," he added with a dark chuckle. Allura's cheeks flushed crimson, but she bit her tongue. As her heart hammered in her chest at the laughter that rolled through the small crowd, she felt Lotor place his hand on top of both of hers on his arm. The gesture was… oddly comforting. He unfortunately stepped away from her side so he could turn to face her before his father, but he retained his connection to her though his hold on her hands.

"The bands?" Zarkon glanced over as Selna brought forth the elaborate bracelets. He took the red satin pillow from the woman and offered them to Lotor first. He picked up the smaller of the two bands and looked to Allura. When she hesitated in confusion, he gently indicated her left hand. She started to extend her left and toward him and paused.

For a single, shimmering second, an entire plan of escape flashed through her mind. _There's still time. You can run._ She glanced down to the way Lotor held her right hand, to Zarkon on her left and the crowd of Drules surrounding them expectantly. _Run now!_ She pressed her eyes closed tightly and shook her head once.

She curled her hand into a fist and in a subtle gesture of her greatest defeat, she relaxed her hand and offered it toward him as she opened her eyes again. Allura found a dark pleasure in the fact that it did not tremble and stayed strong.

Zarkon muttered something about by accepting the bands, each would accept the other as mate. Allura didn't catch most of it; she was far too fascinated by the slender gold band that seemed to fit her wrist perfectly.

"Allura?"

She glanced up suddenly, startled. Her eyes flitted from Zarkon to Lotor.

"Allura, they're waiting for you to confirm your loyalty to me," he murmured softly, not at all surprised nor put off that she wasn't able to follow everything that was happening. Half the words had been in Drule to begin with.

"I… yes, I do," she murmured softly. As she uttered the last two words, the dainty metal around her wrist felt more like a shackle than a piece of jewelry.

Zarkon nodded once and continued. He held out the pillow with the larger band toward the girl, and after taking a deep breath to keep her hands from shaking, she lifted it up between both her palms. As the king finished what he was saying, Lotor extended his left hand to the princess. With everyone's eyes on her, Allura draped the perfectly craft piece of jewelry over his wrist. Where hers was slim and light, his was solid and resembled a piece of armor. She found herself vaguely marveling at how well crafted each piece was.

"I do," Lotor said, startling Allura from her trance. She glanced up suddenly.

"Excellent," Zarkon said. "Seal your arrangement with a kiss, and this will be concluded."

Allura's eyes widened suddenly. Before she could protest, Lotor's arm was around her waist, the other tilting her chin back. His lips crushed into hers with a thirsty passion that left Allura breathless. Cheers erupted from the audience and the princess felt her skin heat in embarrassment. Lotor devoured her so quickly, he gave her no opportunity to strike him in the face. Her hands flailed awkwardly for a moment before settling on his biceps. Despite her fury, she understood how politically inappropriate it would be to slap him, and she refrained.

Lotor took great pleasure in her restraint as he drunk in the taste, the scent and the pure, unbridled passion of her for the first time. By the time he released her, Allura was nearly dizzy from lack of air. She caught her breath and stepped back from him weakly. Lotor only flashed triumphant grin.

"On to the coronation," Zarkon announced. Allura took her cue to continue to back away, happily giving Lotor the center stage and attention of the gathered audience. Selna was hovering nearby as Allura stepped into the background. She placed a comforting hand on her shoulder again.

"Well done," she murmured. Allura gasped and looked to the Drule in surprise. Something in the woman's eyes helped calm her nerves. She just shook her head once.

"I'm just glad the attention is off me," she murmured, glancing down and flicking the bracelet with her fingers. _Great stars, I'm married now,_ she thought with blatant disbelief.

"Mm, right," she murmured mysteriously. Before Allura could say anything else, Selna had left her side and disappeared into the crowd. The Arusian looked back as Lotor bowed and Zarkon removed his crown from his own head and reverently placed it upon his son's. With the same, slow, movement, he withdrew the cape that clasped over his shoulder and placed it over Lotor's shoulder. Cheers erupted from the small crowd as the coronation completed. Allura smiled weakly. At least it was over.

"And now, for my queen," he said lavishly. Allura blinked. "My dear, please come join me," he continued. Allura glanced around uncomfortably before hesitantly making her way toward him. He smiled down at her.

"As king, it is now my duty, honor, and absolute _pleasure_ , to crown my queen."

Allura felt her breath catch as she stood before the former prince. She watched as Lotor reached into an intricately carved wooden chest and produced a lovely, golden crown. It was similar in style to his own, but smaller and significantly more feminine. It was dainty and majestic in every way that Allura was. She stared numbly at the turn of events.

Her hands trembled for the first time as she reached to remove her Arusian tiara.

"Leave it," his voice was a command out loud, but as he moved closer to her, his tone softened and quieted, for her ears only. "This was made just for you. It was designed to accommodate _all_ the other duties and roles you embrace," he explained, settling the crown on her head. It meshed perfectly with her tiara and even clicked into place, making both pieces of headwear a single ornament by design as her tiara became the bottom edge of the elegant crown. She could only gasp in surprise.

He turned away for a moment, reaching back into the chest. From it, he withdrew a stunning shawl the color of midnight. Allura stepped back, stunned.

"Why, my dear, you are the queen," he explained as he settled the fabric over her shoulders. Of the two predominant Drulish colors: blood red and navy blue, the prince had procured the blues for his bride due to her fascination with the color pink. He secured the satin around her bare shoulders with the golden royal crest, and stepped back to admire the woman he had coveted for so long. Standing beneath a Drule Queen's crown and robes, she looked magnificent and wholly confused.

Lotor only grinned appreciatively. With a flourish, he spun away from her to face the small gathering behind him.

"I present to you, my fearsome and loyal subjects, your new queen; the Illustrious Queen Allura of the Drule Empire!" He reached out and took her by the hand, tugging her forward to stand beside him. Boisterous cheering and congratulatory sounds echoed around the room. Allura found herself surprisingly grateful for the possessive arm he snaked around her waist, pulling her into his side. His hand splayed wide on her hip as he held her near his body. Half-tucked into his broad frame, she felt only half as vulnerable before the surly group of Drule surrounding her. As the highest-ranked members of the Empire beneath the king himself, Allura as well-aware that the men – and the handful of women – were accomplished warriors. Positively lethal in combat, they had risen to the top of their ranks by being ruthless, bloodthirsty and unforgiving, and she had no idea with what sort of temperament they viewed her new situation. If Allura were perceived as a threat, or even a minor inconvenience, she knew she was as good as dead, no matter what the new king said.

"Make the announcement and open the doors! There will be much celebration today!" The former king waved his other hand in the air, and guardsmen pulled open the large double doors. Crowds of people lingered outside – the denizens of the planet had been informed of an important announcement, but nothing prepared them for the sight of their prince in full king's regalia with a very demure human woman tucked to his side.

Silence erupted into cacophonous cheering as everyone realized the splendid news without a word being uttered. Chants of "Long live King Lotor!" broke out among the thousands of ordinary citizens gathered both in the main hall and stretching outside the castle.

Allura stared out at the mass of people chanting, cheering and celebrating the new king. As Lotor moved closer to the group to address them, Allura burrowed back and slipped from his grasp. She did _not_ desire to be spotlighted any longer.

He tossed her a devastating smirk as he went to speak to his people. Allura backed into the throne room, clasping her hands in front of her. Cries of celebration broke out outside as the partying began. She distinctly heard Lotor speaking, but his deep voice was lost in the reverberation of everyone's cheers and screams.

"Ah, not interested in the festivities?"

Allura's heart shot to her throat and she felt the blood drain from her face. She glanced up to meet the cold gaze of the former king looking down at her. She afforded him a stiff shake of her head before turning and quickly walking away from him. His dark chuckle echoed off the walls before she broke into a sprint toward the door to the parlor she had come from.

She shut the door behind her and rested her back against it. Her chest heaved with ragged gasps as she calmed her racing heart. After a second of focused breathing, Allura opened her eyes.

She screamed.

"Oh hey, what the heck is that for?! C'mon now," Cossack's voice whined at her in surprise as he stood near the small refreshment stand in the corner of the staging room. "I just wanted a drink, what gives?"

She blinked at him in open surprise as he sipped some wine.

"It's really good, do you want some?" He offered her a glass. Allura shook her head mutely in response, staring with open surprise at the man she had often come to blows with on the battle field. "Ah well, your loss. Why aren't you out there with the party, anyway?" He refilled his glass before looking to her.

"I… didn't feel like it," she said after a moment of contemplation. The surrealism of the situation had caught her off-guard.

"Oh, fair enough," he said casually. "I never cared for social situations myself. Too much talking to people," he conspired with her. Allura found her lips curling up slightly at the strange conversation she found herself in with a former enemy. _Perhaps he was only an enemy because you were on two different sides of an objective,_ she thought. Allura had always believed in two sides to a story, but it had been difficult to see the other side when her entire planet's livelihood was on the line.

"Cossack, can you help me with something?" Allura found strength in her voice as she warmed up to the commander in the casual setting.

"Sure, as long as the king won't behead me for it. What do you need? It's technically my duty to serve you, anyway," he added.

"Can you help me find a command center? I'd like to call Arus. …I'd like to tell them what's happening before they hear it from someone else. I don't want them to send the robot lions after me, and I think they very much will if I don't reach out to them first. Please," she added, folding her hands in front of her.

"…Straight to business already. Don't people party on your planet?"

Allura felt her lips curl up slightly at the corners at his offhand comment. He waved his hand dismissively and finished his wine.

"Sure, sure, I'll show you how to access the networks. It won't be secure, so, like, anyone can hear it, so just be careful what you say," he added. Allura nodded as Cossack led the way out of the small parlor.

Allura stood before the viewing screen on the small monitor kiosk before her. Her hands were clasped in front of her as the screen flashed. She waited, holding her breath as she hailed the Castle of Lions. After a tense minute, Coran answered.

"Coran!" Allura smiled in relief at the sight of her guardian.

"Princess, what the _hell_ is going on?!" Keith's voice thundered from behind her advisor as he came into the screen. The rest of her team were quick behind him.

"So you've heard," she said, shocked that the news had traveled so fast.

"We've been out scouring the stars for you after you just… _took off_ and _this_ is what you have to show for it?" Keith fumed and Allura recoiled slightly. She had never seen her commander so angry.

"It's not what you think, Keith. It's actually quite complicated. I-"

"Don't you trust us? Didn't you believe we would rescue you? We were coming for you, Princess, why did you give up on us so quickly?"

Allura faltered. She hadn't considered how her actions appeared to anyone outside her agreement with Lotor.

"It's not what you think, Keith. I promise. It's far more complex, and I put a lot of thought into this. I'll explain when I return-"

"We will fix this," he vowed. Allura held up her hands in a panic.

"Don't! Just… give me time to explain to you in person what is going on," she begged. She glanced to Cossack in the background who nodded at her choice of discretion.

"What does he have over your head? I'll kill him, I swear it."

"Keith," Allura began as the commander waved her off, turning and storming from the control tower. Allura looked to the other three team members and was met with expressions of pain and incomprehension.

"We could have helped, didn't you trust us?"

"Lance, it's so much more than it looks, I promise. I'll be back in a day or so, and I promise it will make sense," she tried to explain as vaguely as she could.

"Your friends are very cross with you right now, and they have every right to be. You made a very reckless decision and have thrown all of Arus and the Galaxy Alliance into grave danger," Coran said darkly.

"You don't understand! I will explain it all, I promise. Just please, do not send the lions after me. Everything is fine, I am safe," she added at the look her advisor shot her.

"Well, we will eagerly await a fantastic explanation to the recent decisions you have made. Hopefully Keith will have had time to calm down by then," he said with finality, ending the transmission.

Allura stared at the dark screen in front of her, tears flooding the corners of her eyes as her very friends hailed her with unadulterated fury. She sniffled a little and wiped her eyes.

"…You okay?"

Cossack's concern startled her and she glanced to where he was reclining against a wall in the corner in case she had any technical difficulties.

"Yeah," she said after a moment. "…that was supposed to be the easier of the two calls. I've never seen Keith so furious before," she murmured, looking back to the screen. "Okay, one more. …And it's probably going to be worse."

With trembling hands, she dialed the direct line to the Galaxy Alliance headquarters. Marshal Graham answered.

"What the bloody hell are you doing?!"

She winced at his words. _So much for being the one to make the announcements,_ she thought dryly as he launched into a torrent of curses and damnation.

"I am making political maneuvers to better-"

"The bloody goddamn _hell_ you are," he thundered back, shocking the new queen. She stepped back in surprise, regarding the man on the video feed. "How in the seven heavens to plan to care for Arus under _his_ thumb? You're as good as dead and you've damned us all!"

She stood stoic, listening to his words as his fury crashed into her.

"I disagree," she said quietly after a moment.

"Is Arus still your domain, or shall I send my correspondences to King Lotor now?" The sneer in his voice sent a shudder down Allura's spine.

"It's mine," she affirmed.

"I should excommunicate you for this high treason," he muttered. A thread of silence beat between them before Allura responded.

"Fine."

"You _want_ me to remove Arus from its partnership with the Galaxy Alliance?"

"Of course not. I personally feel that I can be impartial and serve both parties appropriately and justly. I think that-"

"Justly. Impartially. Allura he married you so that he can _kill_ you. Arus is as good as dead. The Alliance is compromised. We can no longer help you without putting the entirety of our faction at risk to do so."

"Look, just give me time to explain to you what's going on," she said after a shaky breath. She felt herself oddly more prepared for the Marshal 's temper as she had expected it from the beginning. She had worked with the older man since she had been a young girl first stepping into the political minefield between Arus and the Drule Empire. He had been kind to her, but always firm. His anger wasn't undue – her situation would alarm any of her allies.

"I'm waiting," he said after a few tense seconds. Allura simply shook her head.

"Not here. But I assure you it's not quite as reckless as it may appear," she reasoned with him. His anger ebbed slightly and he just scoffed.

"Until I have a full understanding of what is going on and how it affects Arus, I'm afraid I'll have to cut our ties to your planet. I can't have my entire consortium in danger." Allura flinched and nodded.

"If you think that's best."

"I'm sorry, but until further notice, you're on your own." He ended the feed with a gentle finality.

Allura, once again, found herself staring in stunned silence at the dark screen in front of her. With winsome dignity, she smiled as best she could and glanced over to Cossack. She found herself surprised to find Lotor standing next to him.

"Well, that went better than expected," she said with weak sincerity. Lotor looked pointedly at Cossack and the man bowed before his king and then again before his new queen before departing.

"Are you finished?" His eyes flashed over her carefully.

"Yes," she admitted. "I expected you to be at the festivities for a while."

"I had other things occupying my mind," he said mysteriously. She walked carefully toward him. He turned and led the way out of the conference room and down the hallway, Allura trailing at his side.

"How do you know so much about me?" She changed the subject from the awkward tension that hung between them. She wondered how much of the call he had seen.

"What do you mean?" He glanced down at her in surprise.

"You know my dress size, my shoe size… Apparently the size of bracelet that fits me, the size of crown upon my head… why do you know all that?" She stared straight ahead as they walked side by side, her hands folded across her chest.

"I make it a point to know as much as I possibly can about you," he answered after a moment's hesitation. Silence bled between them before Allura found her words as they rounded a corner.

"I don't think I know anything about you," she admitted.

"Well, I _do_ intend to change that," he murmured, coming upon their chamber doors. He pushed the barrier open and both king and queen were met with a stunning sight.

Upon the master bed, shimmering black gossamer drapes framed the platform. Candles flickered from all corners of the room. Blood red rose petals were tossed across the floor and the top of the bed. Champagne nestled in a cooler nearby, glassed prepped for consumption.

"Oh great stars." It was the last thing Allura uttered before her world plunged into blackness.

Had Lotor been any slower in his reflexes, his new bride would have crashed to the ground in a dead faint. He clutched her gently to his chest before carrying her further into the room.

"Well done, Selna. Perhaps _too_ well done," he murmured, laying the exhausted bride out on the bed. He extinguished the candles before turning his attention to her. He sat beside her and gingerly worked her hair free of the pins and veil to allow her a more comfortable rest. He removed her crown, tiara and shawl, setting them all aside and placed the covers around her.

It wasn't much past midday, but the young queen was exhausted and overwhelmed. He wagered there was an equal chance she would awaken before nightfall or sleep the entire day away. The last few days had been trying on her, and he noticed her skin appeared shades paler than it should have been. _She hasn't been eating,_ he reminded himself. Lotor frowned.

He studied her sleeping features for a moment. Concern laced through him, quickly quelled by pride.

 _Mine,_ he thought. _All mine._

He pulled the door shut behind him and returned to the ongoing party outside.

* * *

 **Yet another chapter, yay! As always,please leave me some feedback. Thanks for reading!**


	6. Provocation

**Chapter 6 - Provocation**

* * *

Allura stirred. A sensual stretch rolled through her as she flexed her fingers, arched her back and curled her toes. A yawn later and she became distinctly aware of a firm surface beneath her. Allura let her fingers splay out naturally, exploring the sensation. Warm.

Her eyes opened slowly and she blinked, processing the situation around her carefully. Her eyes drifted toward her pillow and she found herself looking at the naked, remarkably chiseled, chest of Prince – _King_ – Lotor himself.

She screamed.

Lotor bolted upright as Allura launched off of him in a blind panic. She stood in the center of the room, looking around fervently, her memories slowly trickling back to her. A few deep breaths later, and she just looked to the shocked prince.

He sat upright in the bed, his lazon sword out as he looked around the room, his eyes wide with concern. Allura caught her breath after a moment and placed the heel of her palm to her forehead.

"Sorry," she said after a moment. "I find my dreams and my reality have been bleeding together lately. I'm not always certain what is actually happening," she finished. She glanced over to him. "…why is your sword drawn?"

"I…" he trailed off, looking over her slender frame in the center of the bedchamber. "You screamed," he said at last, stunned by her beauty. The pink and gold gown was rumpled from rest and her hair was fluffed and unkempt… she had never looked more decadent as she blinked sleepily, her faculties returning. Allura frowned as she processed his comment.

"Were you going to slit my throat for that?" Her comment was only made in half-jest as she eyed him warily. He stared back at her in blatant surprise before standing up and sheathing the sword in the hilt resting near the bed.

"Of course not! I hadn't isolated what was threatening you, yet!" He looked almost angry at the implication that he would do her harm. Allura just looked surprised at the honest answer.

"Oh," she murmured, running her hands through her hair. She blinked again, noticing Lotor's attire for the first time. "Great stars, you're half-naked," she cried out, turning her head to avert her gaze.

Lotor frowned and looked down at the black silken pants adoring his lower frame.

"I typically don't wear anything when I sleep," he muttered. Allura cried out at the thought, her skin turning an even brighter shade of red. A smirk twitched at his lips. His bride was literally blushing. He waited a moment with his arms patiently crossed over his chest to see what she would do. Allura stubbornly continued to stare at the far wall in response while chewing on her bottom lip.

"Well," he began, dropping his arms. "I'm going to shower. You're always welcome to join me, my dear," he said silkily. To his delight, her skin turned yet another shade darker. Her shoulders trembled slightly.

"I'm fine, thank you," she whispered weakly. Her eyes stayed trained on the wall away from him.

"Allura, you are my wife now, you realize that, right?" He frowned as her skin flashed from crimson to pale.

"I promised you my hand in marriage, Lotor. Nothing more." Her words were still a trembling whisper, but she forced them out with the last reserves of her courage.

The only sound in the room was the hiss of silk falling to the floor. Allura's eyes widened before clasping her hands over them as she realized he had let his pants fall away. Lotor said nothing, but she could practically feel the quiet anger rolling from the unpredictable – and currently naked - man.

With no explanation, the soft sound of bare footsteps on tile echoed as he made his way into the bathroom. He slammed the door shut and Allura winced. Carefully, she peeked between her fingers and looked around the empty bedroom. As she had guessed, his black pants lay in a puddle on the floor where he had been standing. She swallowed nervously.

Allura waited until she heard the water turn on before she flew to the wardrobe. She whipped out the first gown she could find – the sky blue and cream one fell into her hands – and she quickly traded out the rumpled, slept-in pink one for the fresh garment.

She ran the brush through her hair quickly and freshened up with some toiletries before reaching for her tiara. She paused and lifted the entire ensemble of crown and tiara to inspect it more closely. The golden headdress was lovely, sculpted to fit her head alone. It was elegant but dainty, and had somehow become a single piece with the Arusian tiara lining the bottom. The jewel in the center glittered lightly. She shook her head once and set the piece back down near the shawl.

Her eyes shot to the bathroom door as the water shut off. With haste, she evacuated the bedroom. She had very little desire to be anywhere near the angry king. She had even less desire to be near him while he was naked. Shoes were left behind as she bolted into the corridor, picking a direction at random. Anywhere would do.

 _There's only so long you can put him off,_ she chided herself as she walked briskly. _As long as possible._ Her stomach tightened in a knot. Did she dare push him to the point of anger when it came to wifely relations? She shook her head to clear it and the flush staining her skin.

Allura had no idea what part of the enormous palace she had run to, but she found herself wandering along a skywalk. The long corridor seemed to connect two spires in the castle and the walls and ceiling were reinforced glass, giving her an open view of the clouds above. She paused in her walk and leaned against the railing with a sigh, eyeing the swirling sky and flashes of lightning overhead. _So dreary,_ she thought.

The new queen allowed her thoughts to run freely as she rested her forehead against the glass. What would she say to Keith? Would he ever forgive her? _Maybe I should wait a little longer to go to Arus, to let them calm down,_ she contemplated.

"I've made such a mess of everything," she murmured with an exhale. She opened her eyes and glanced down to the bracelet glinting in the false light overhead. "But, if he actually keeps his word, it'll be better for everyone," she acknowledged to herself.

A subtle flash of light caught her eye and she looked down the end of the hallway, just in time to see Blue Cat regard her with a curious look before walking off. She shrugged a little and hugged her shoulders. No other souls seemed to be around and she found herself grateful for the reprieve. Allura returned her gaze outside as her hair fluttered freely down her back and pooled over her hunched shoulders.

The coliseum lights flashed on and she winced. Perhaps King Lotor was down there enjoying some entertainment. Allura felt her stomach curl at the hope that it would keep him from taking his fury out on her behind closed doors.

"That's terrible of you, to wish that suffering on someone else," she chided herself. "What are you becoming?" She shook her head again and pushed off the railing to begin wandering the hallway. She reached the fork at the end and glanced in both directions. She decided to take the path Blue Cat did not take.

Ten steps in, a thunderous fury boomed out behind her.

"You little _bitch!_ " Allura wheeled around to find a very angry Zarkon bearing down on her quickly in the otherwise empty hallway. She had no idea what he was cross about, but had no intention to linger and find out. Before she could get more than a step away from him, the angry ex-king caught her arm. "I no longer have any slaves to serve me, and it's _all. Your. Fault_!"

As he slammed her into the wall with one hand, Allura felt the steel creak behind her at his strength as the breath left her lungs. Even with his age, the Drule far outpaced her in height, strength and speed. She barely thrust her hand up toward her throat to catch his palm before it closed around her windpipe. She winced in pain as he squeezed. Despite slipping her fingers in his hold to try and pry it off, he still slowly cut her oxygen supply off while shoving her further against the wall.

"I have no one to service me, to wait on me. You've gotten in his head and _corrupted my empire,_ " he snarled in her face. Allura trembled from exerting the last of her strength to try and pry his hand off her throat. He didn't budge as he literally bent the young queen to his will. The steel behind her spine creaked.

She winced and continued to try and push him off while he slowly closed in. Her dwindling window to breathe vanished completely as he effectively closed off the connection between her lungs and lips. Allura calculated that she had only a couple minutes left to figure an escape plan before she was finished.

"Beast," she whispered out at him with the last of the air remaining in her lungs. Her brow furrowed and her eyes nearly closed in a wince as she struggled to maintain consciousness. "He… …offered." Allura could feel her lungs burning. Pain laced her entire body as she tried to push him back and protect her throat.

"I could just snap your pretty neck right here," he hissed at her. "But I'd much rather watch you beg for your life as I choke it out of you."

"Never." The words no longer held even a whisper, her lips just made the motion of creating the word. Her vision swirled. Allura's lungs had stopped burning and for a moment, she felt weightless before everything went black. She was out of time. Somewhere in the haze of what remained, Allura could have sworn she heard the hum of a lazon sword.

* * *

Cold.

Allura felt cold.

 _Why cold?_

As if in answer to her question, heat rushed through her body. It filled the void of weightlessness and warmed her skin. As it escalated, it flurried across her limbs and into her chest. The heat rose in intensity until it nearly burned. With no other option as the fire consumed her center, she gasped out.

Allura blinked once. Twice. She found herself looking into a familiar pair of serpentine eyes. He stared down at her as she breathed deeply, rapidly, as if she couldn't consume enough air. Tears stung at the corners of her eyes as she struggled to catch her breath.

The golden eyes closed in relief and she felt a pair of lips press to her forehead reverently. Lotor stepped back, giving her space. Allura looked around her surroundings as her hyperventilating calmed. She sat on the floor of the hallway, across from where Zarkon was restrained by several guardsmen. Lotor had risen from his kneeling position and was watching her with what appeared to be concern.

The queen felt confused. As she leaned forward to press off the ground, Lotor knelt down before her again.

"Stay, a medic is on the way," he said gently.

"A medic? That's ridiculous, I don't need-" She paused at the look on his face. She swallowed nervously, surprised at the burning sensation the action gave her. "…what happened?"

She watched him carefully as his face shifted from fury to what almost resembled fear.

"Your heart stopped beating momentarily," he said after a second's pause. He reached up and brushed the hair back from her face. His eyes trailed down her face to her throat and his fear hardened into cold anger once more. "It's going to bruise," he explained at her confused look.

She reached up and weakly touched her throat, still dazed by everything. After a moment, her lips twitched playfully.

"I told you someone would want me dead," she teased him. Her voice was uncomfortably strained and she sounded as if she might lose it altogether if she spoke too much. It was unusually raspy and pained. Lotor scowled at her.

"Do not make jokes about that," he said dismissively before rising back to his feet. He stared at his father lethally. After a moment, he looked back down at Allura.

"So, what punishment would you like for him?"

She just stared up at him in open surprise.

"What?" Her voice hitched at the end and he winced, hearing the stress her vocal chords had endured at his father's crushing grasp. He found himself grateful that the old man favored a more sinister approach to harm; she would have long been gone before he had arrived had he just broken her fragile neck.

"How would you like this attempt on your life to be punished," he repeated.

"I… wouldn't?" She glanced up at him in confusion before pointing toward Zarkon as she explained. "He has every right to be upset. Every balance that has existed up until now has completely been thrown off. That's the same reason the Castle of Lions is cross with me right now." She folded her hands in her lap and glanced down to them. "I just wish talking more and fighting less was an option."

Zarkon just snorted, his fury still rampant but restrained by the guardsmen.

"And I know that's not something you lot… do much, and that's fair. I _know_ that I'm a threat. I told you that when we first spoke Lotor. Even if I'm not physically stronger or faster, I'm dangerous because I'm… different."

Lotor stared down at his wife with an unfathomable look on his face before he spoke his next words carefully.

"I don't think you quite understand your position, Allura," he said slowly.

"Oh, I do. Puppet and whatnot," she waved her hand dismissively.

"Quite the contrary. That crown and that sash – they are not trinkets with which to amuse yourself with. They are the very epitome of the royal family. You _are_ the queen of the Drule Empire, Allura. Not just as a title because you are my wife. There is only one person in all of our reach and reign that does not answer to you, and that's myself."

The silence that settled in the hallway was thick with tension.

"I don't understand," Allura whispered after a moment.

"Zarkon, the former king, the man who took your father from you," he said leisurely, enjoying the sudden paleness of his father's face as he realized where his son was going. "Is your mere _servant_ , my dear. You now outrank him. Substantially. Not only did he commit the crime of assaulting the woman I love, but also his commanding officer," he finished with a fanged grin at Allura's shock.

"…why?"

Lotor tossed his head back and laughed darkly.

"I'm so pleased you asked. I orchestrated it this way I require the absolute best in everything. With your power now in the Drule Empire, plus your connections to Arus and Voltron – even ignoring the questionable state of the Galaxy Alliance, you are _easily_ the single most powerful person in the entire galaxy. And you belong to me. The most beautiful, most powerful and most important person that ever existed is now my wife."

"I'm not important," she murmured. Her shock was shattered with his last statement as she turned away. "I'm no one to anyone," she explained. "I don't want power. I don't want control. I just want my duty of care to be fulfilled. I just want the people of my planet to live in peace and quiet. I don't want them to ever know fear or suffering. I don't want an empire. I don't want a galaxy," she said sadly, shaking her head.

"Like I said, if I just wanted a pretty thing at my side, Allura, I would have taken a slave as a bride years ago." She glanced up at his serpentine irises glinted dangerously.

She just sighed and started to push up from the floor again.

"Here, m'Lady," an elderly Drule was suddenly at the queen's side, helping her rise. Lotor startled.

"You made it. Allura, this is the medic," he explained.

Allura physically recoiled on pure instinct when the gentle doctor touched her throat lightly to inspect any damage.

She wasn't too keen on having another Drule's hand around her windpipe anytime soon.

"Please let me look, ma'am," he insisted, reaching for her again. Allura winced and nodded, letting the man gently touch at the bruising that had already formed on the surface of her skin. His touch was light as he pressed into where Zarkon's grip had crushed her. Without explanation, he procured a stethoscope and pressed it to her chest.

"Breathe deeply for me, please," he instructed and Allura complied. After three breaths, he returned the instrument to his bag and went back to gently touching the flesh of her throat.

"She'll be fine," he said after a moment. "There will be some outward bruising for certain, and there is some internal damage, but nothing that won't heal with time. Her trachea didn't collapse, _fortunately,_ " he said, eyeing the former king with a poisonous look. "Her voice may just be weak for another day or so," he finished, packing up his medical hit.

"Thank you," she said after the doctor bowed before her. He turned and left the small entourage, his work completed.

"Now, my dear. What of my father? It's your decision how justice be mete."

Allura just shook her head again.

"No, I don't want any part of that," she reiterated. "I think I'd like some time to actually process what's happening right now," she murmured.

"Get him out of here," he dismissed the guards with Zarkon and they hauled the furious former monarch down the hallway. "I'll deal with him later."

Allura shivered at his words.

Once they were alone in the hallway, Lotor fixed Allura with his gaze. She swallowed nervously, quickly reminded that the action was currently unpleasant for her. He watched her wordlessly, his eyes glancing from her face to her throat and back again.

Lotor turned his gaze down the hall his guards had gone to see if they were still in the hallway. Satisfied they were truly alone, he turned back to her and snatched her into an embrace. Allura yelped softly in surprise, crushed into his chest as his arms circled her like protective iron bands. Her palms rested against his chest as she moved to push away from him, but she hesitated. He had, after all, just saved her life.

Allura's heart hammered in her chest as she allowed him to embrace her.

"How did you know I was here?" She murmured after a moment. The longer she stayed in his hold, the more comforting the sensation felt. Allura felt _safe._ It was a strange feeling to come to someone who tried desperately to protect a war-torn planet, but in the moment she stood in his arms, she felt like nothing could ever hurt her again. _How peculiar that it comes from him,_ she thought to herself.

The queen surprised both herself and Lotor by letting her arms reach up and wrap around his back, pulling herself closer into his hold.

"Haggar warned me you might be in danger. She said you were on the breezeway and that Zarkon was in a particularly sour mood," he murmured into her hair. He inhaled her scent as she startled.

"Blue Cat!" She remembered seeing the feline earlier before Zarkon had appeared. He just murmured an assent, delighting in the feel of her fingers curling into the fabric of his tunic.

"Thank you," she said after another moment passed between them. "You saved my life."

"I saved his, too," he muttered darkly. "There would be no death less honorable nor more painful for him had he succeeded." Allura shivered again at the response. "Why didn't you want any punishment for him?" He took a step back so he could tilt her chin to look up at him. She blinked, a blush staining her cheeks as her fingers continued to curl into the fabric on his back.

"I don't want things to be hostile. Being cruel back would only fuel it. I understand why he's upset," she added.

"He tried to _kill you_ ," he emphasized with incredulity. "I'm taking steps to make sure he never tries to again, but with your approach, he very well could!"

She sighed softly, meeting his gaze comfortably.

"He's tried to kill me before, too. He succeeded with my father."

"And now you could finally take revenge," he added with lethality. Allura only shook her head in response.

"I never want that. And my father would be ashamed if I ever did anything like that in his name. He would be more proud if I could change something that used to be hostile," she explained. Lotor reached up and brushed some of the hair near her face.

"You are… an enigma, Allura," he murmured softly.

She started to shake her head dismissively as he caught her chin and stared down into her eyes. His gloved hand brushed her bottom lip lightly and her azure gaze widened as Allura realized his intention.

"Lotor," she murmured softly as he leaned in toward her. She winced, but for the first time she didn't pull away from him. Her eyelids draped shut as she braced, yet her hands stayed at his back. He paused.

"Why do you act like I'm going to hurt you every time I touch you," he murmured, his lips just a breath from her own.

"Because you always do," she whispered back, breathless. Her eyes opened to look up at him, tears shimmering in the corners. He stilled, watching her intently. "You always take, it's always for you," she explained in his silence. Her throat released a sad noise as he pulled her closer, his lips brushing hers ever so slightly, but he went no further.

The rumble in his chest resembled a growl as he released her chin and stepped back away from her.

"Come," he beckoned her. Allura stared at him, stunned. When she didn't respond, he took her wrist in his hand and led her down the hallway. "We're going to the kitchen and we are going to find something for you to eat, dammit."

Allura flushed as she realized how long it had been since she had consumed anything substantial. She trailed behind him as he led her, almost forcibly, down the hallway, but a faint smile touched at her lips as she watched his back.

 _Is he… trying to show concern?_ She stopped the giggle that came to her lips and just shook her head once, content to follow behind him. Allura entertained the surprising idea that on some level, Lotor might actually _care_ for her.

He didn't bother to look behind him as he hauled her down the hallway, leading the way to the massive kitchen. He was going to get some food inside Allura even if he had to feed her by hand himself. He was determined not to take no for an answer. Her health was rapidly declining, and he had no desire to have her continue fainting on him. He had plans in mind for later.

* * *

 **Bam! Another update! As always, I love your feedback!**


	7. Passion

**Chapter 7 - Passion**

* * *

Lotor sat across from Allura. The small table in the kitchen preparation area gave them a sense of intimacy. There was no grand ballroom table stretching across a room or a balcony between them; only the span of four feet separated their legs.

He was trying a new approach in an effort to get his fair queen to eat. Instead of an elaborate feast of lamb shanks and grilled steaks, he had a lighter spread prepared for her. Small sandwich squares piled on a plate next to a traditional Drule sauce for dipping fruit into. Everything in front of her was unintimidating and bite-sized in an effort to get her to eat it.

To the king's immense satisfaction, it worked. Allura had devoured, warily at first, three of the miniature sandwich triangles. She'd tried the sauce on a berry before forgoing the dip in favor of just the fruit.

He sipped from his glass of wine as he watched her with rapt attention. Dainty fingers lifted a morsel of dessert and placed it past her full lips.

"There's no better way to make a girl feel self-conscious than to watch her eat, you know," she murmured as she plucked up another sandwich triangle. Her eyes never flickered to his, but she was very aware of the intensity of his gaze on her.

"Your health concerns me," he said after a moment.

"But you don't have to _stare_ at me," she insisted, setting the small triangle down and glaring at him across the table. He watched her for a moment and shook his head once.

"Very well," he said as he rose abruptly from the table and walked toward where a wall of ovens sat. He folded his arms behind him and afforded her a degree of privacy. Allura eyed him for a moment before glancing back to the tray of tiny sandwiches. With one last look toward Lotor, she quickly shoveled the food into her mouth.

With her elevated anxiety levels lessening, Allura's appetite had returned in force, recognizing her lack of nutrients over several days. She flushed brightly as he turned around and noticed the tray was empty in front of her. She dabbed her lips daintily in response. He grinned, the tips of his fangs appearing.

"Good," he muttered, clearing the tray. "Now the fruit," he pointed. She scowled.

"You can't tell me what to do."

"I'm the king, you're the queen. Of course I can."

"I'm your _wife_."

"Exactly," he said, and blinked as the intensity of her statement dawned on him.

"When has any man ever successfully told his wife what to do," she murmured playfully.

He stared, struck by her banter. Allura hadn't been much for humor with him the past few days, and the ease with which she addressed her sudden, new relationship to him caught him by surprise. Without warning, his lethal grin widened across his face. He was pleased by her fire, her humor, and the comfort with which she retaliated against him.

She plopped a berry in her mouth and followed it up with a sip of water. He wandered back to the small table and eased himself into the chair. He averted his gaze, giving her some privacy while she devoured much-needed sustenance.

"My schedule is clear for the evening, but tomorrow I'll be in a few meetings in the morning. A few planets have questions with the change in leadership and I need to address their concerns," he explained, flipping through a couple sheets of paper.

Allura glanced up at him, openly surprised. She swallowed the fruit in her mouth and sat back in her chair.

"Why are you sharing this with me," she inquired. He glanced up toward her over the paper schedule.

"…You're the queen. I genuinely meant what I said. It wasn't just for show against my father, Allura. You're the queen of the Empire. …would you prefer not to be in the know? I can handle everything for you if you prefer."

Allura stared.

"I… no," she trailed off thoughtfully. "I suppose I didn't realize my opinion on anything mattered to you," she admitted after a moment. She speared a bite-sized piece of roasted meat and popped it into her mouth, contemplating the information he had given her.

He studied her closely and as she glanced to him and blushed. When she paused in her chewing, he averted his gaze once more.

"What do you do in meetings like that?" She leaned forward on the table toward him, finding herself surprisingly interested in some aspects of his life.

"What is it that you think I do, Allura?" He turned the question back on her, careful to keep his eyes on the paperwork in his lap in an effort to encourage further consumption.

Allura nibbled on a biscuit thoughtfully for a moment.

"I don't know," she answered truthfully. "I know what I do on Arus, but I…" She paused and blinked, setting the remaining portion of biscuit down on her plate.

Lotor locked his eyes on hers.

"I… don't know. I suppose I figure Zarkon just… threatened and bullied everyone until he got his way out of fear. Anyone who didn't give him what he wanted was… destroyed. I mean. I can't say he's ever outwardly tried any thoughtful diplomatic relations with Arus," she explained, slowly putting together the disjointed thoughts in her mind. "How does a planet become part of the Drule Empire besides being conquered?"

"They don't," he explained after a moment. "You're exactly correct in your observation. If it's not inhabited by Drules, it had been… procured by them. Local residents conform or… well, they conform one way or the other," he finished. He watched her expression closely.

"How… is that sustainable, though? You have a growing civilization," she began, pausing to consider her words. Lotor found himself surprised at how comfortably she just took the conquering to be a fact and moved forward. "And when you take from planets on such a level that they can't reproduce, or the planet is ripped apart in combat – how do you sustain your people that way? Your populations keep rising, but you leave dead planets in your wake."

"We can't."

Allura's eyes widened at his answer. Lotor shifted his weight in his chair, crossing one leg over the other as he leaned back. Dropping the stack of papers in front of him on the table, he nodded his head toward it.

"This has never been done before."

"I… so what is it… that you're doing," she asked, her lips parted in confusion.

"My father is exceedingly proud. And it has driven the Empire into a dangerous economic decline. Action needs to be taken," he finished, sitting back and smiling at her.

Allura felt a chill flutter down her spine as something about what he said resonated with her. Hope should have been her predominant emotion – she felt as though she should have been excited that Lotor was not considering following the same path of reckless and wanton destruction that his father took. But hidden in his words was something dark that she knew she was missing. She frowned at him. The lethally sweet smile he bestowed upon her solidified her fears that there was an undertone she was missing, and he was waiting patiently for her to piece it together.

She shook her head once and took a bite out of an apple nearby. Lotor's terrifying look faded into one of appropriate satisfaction. She frowned at him, trying to divine the hidden message he was holding back from her.

"I'd like to go back to Arus soon," she articulated after a moment of consideration. "I need… I need to explain to them what's going on. Otherwise they're going to come here eventually and try and burn the place down," she said. "They're really cross with me right now, but I need to go anyway," she added after a moment.

"Why are they so angry?" He looked up at her from his documents.

"Because they don't understand. They think I didn't trust them, but that's not the case," she explained. "They don't realize our arrangement and why I couldn't say no. It had nothing to do with not trusting them to come for me, or not believing in their capabilities. …but I couldn't explain that over an unsecure line," she added.

"Why didn't you tell them?" He tilted his head to the side as she nudged her plate to the side, indicating she was finished. His quick eyes swept over the remaining dishes. Satisfied she had consumed an adequate amount of nutrition, he let the subject drop.

"I…" She trailed off, confused. "I mean I will, I just…"

"You intentionally kept the reason for your acquiescence out of the public spotlight. Why," he pushed her carefully. Allura just returned his curiosity with a stunned look.

"Why would I? One, that's my private business, not the galaxy's," she tapped off her index finger. "Two, I can't even _begin_ to imagine the political complications on your end if that came out. My understanding is that it's better if your people believe you just bullied me into it." She looked thoughtful for a moment before tapping on her ring finger. "And three, can you imagine how furious your father would have been if he knew everything?" She shook her head once, a shiver running down her spine.

Lotor stayed quiet while he watched her, his eyes drawn to the darkening bruise around her slender neck. His lips tensed slightly as he checked his rising fury.

"What's wrong?" Her eyes widened as she saw his own harden dangerously. "What are you looking- oh," she blinked, realizing what her skin must look like. She reached up and self consciously fluffed her hair over her shoulders, concealing most of the evidence of her near-fatal incident. "It's fine," she said after a moment.

He closed his eyes and exhaled sharply through his nose in response.

"We can agree to disagree on that sentiment, Allura," he said darkly.

"Anyway," she said shyly, toying with one of the strands of hair falling over her shoulder. "I never got a chance to ask you. Why…. How did… I mean," she paused, pressing her lips together in frustration that she couldn't gather her words properly. He chuckled darkly at her, eliciting a blush from her cheeks. "Why the crown and the… thing," she gestured across her shoulders.

"Ah, my dear, they are the queen's Crown and Drape. All queens have worn them in some capacity. Each has been slightly different, tailored to meet the personality of each, but they are a symbol of your authority in the Empire."

Allura sat back, stunned.

"And that's where I'm still confused. Why… why?" She started off initiating a question and ended with just the interrogative.

"As I said. You are my queen, not my servant. The Empire, contrarily, serves _you_. Do you remember when we crossed paths a few years ago, I promised you the universe? I meant it. We govern the stars themselves," he finished reverently.

"But why do you need me to do that," she pressed, still finding his words to be confusing. "It sounds like you had that already. Why share it?"

He stared at her openly for a moment before replying in the most raw and honest way he could, as if the answer were obvious.

"Because you are the woman I love."

Allura stared across the table at the new king flatly. She'd heard the word 'love' from Lotor many times before, usually accompanied by a display of power, bloodsport or holding her at swordpoint. She snorted in response.

"I don't believe you actually understand what that means," she said after a moment.

"Of course I love you! I'd slay planets for you, spill blood and burn skies to prove it!"

Allura's lips twitched in response.

"That's not what love is to me, Lotor." She shook her head sadly. "Love is a gratuitous demonstration of force; it is not a coveting of what is 'the best,' as you have so referred to me now. It's about gentleness and softness. It's about strength and compassion. It's about putting the needs, wants and desires of the person you feel affection for first because they're important to you. It's not about taking," she finished flatly, sipping more of her water. "It's about giving."

Lotor stared at her darkly for a moment, his eyes filled with an unreadable emotion. Allura worried for a moment she had pushed him too far when he responded.

"My turn to ask a question," he said, masking any of the remaining thoughts he had on the subject of love. When she looked perplexed, he continued. "How did you get here?"

"Well, you cornered me in your bedroom and told-"

"…Before that. I don't mean _here_ ," he gave her a dry look, well aware she was teasing him with her literal interpretation. His suspicions were confirmed when her lips twitched ever so slightly in response. "I meant to Doom. My Sky Captains have scoured the area, there's no sign of any ship, much less the Blue Lion."

Allura leaned back in her seat and glared at him.

"Why would I tell you that?"

"So that mans that Blue Lion is somewhere on my planet," he murmured off-handedly. Allura's eyes widened.

"I didn't say that! Why would you assume that?"

"I didn't… but your sudden panic confirms my suspicions. Now, where did you hide that massive beast?"

She crossed her arms over her chest in defiance.

"Dammit Allura, why won't you tell me?"

"Why? Why do you need to know that? How do I know you won't just tear it apart or try and build one of your own?" She scowled back at him. "You only promised that Voltron would stay under my control, and you wouldn't harm the pilots. You never said you wouldn't tear apart my lion, either just because you could, or to see how it worked. I'm not giving away my secrets," she finished with a dark glare.

He returned her look in kind. A heavy silence settled across the table. Allura was the first to break it with a sigh, dropping her hands back to her lap and her gaze back to the table. She was no match for the fury of the Drule king.

"Okay, that was… unnecessarily hostile on my part," she admitted after a moment. "But why do you want to know? Why does it matter to you where it is?"

"I'm fascinated that you managed to park that beast somewhere and elude all of my guardsmen. Allura, you were so stealthy you broke into one of the most fortified bases in the galaxy. And I still have yet to see how you even got onto the guarded planet in the first place. That's damned impressive," he finished with open awe. She blinked at him in surprise, a slight blush on her cheeks.

"It wasn't that stealthy, obviously. You found me," she said quietly.

"Allura, if I hadn't happened to be in the same hallway as you, you probably would have come and gone undetected," he admitted openly.

"Not possible, you came right to me, like… like someone had told you exactly where I was," she flustered with a slight frown.

"Allura. I _always_ see you." She gasped and glanced up to him, struck frozen by the dark intensity of his gaze. As soon as he caught her eye, Allura found she couldn't look away. It resembled the snare of a predator; hypnotizing and lethal. Her blood felt like ice beneath her burning skin and her heart trembled violently in her chest beneath his scorching gaze. "Always." She swallowed fearfully.

After several seconds of heart-palpitating silence, Lotor released her from his gaze. With a slow blink, he opened his lids and looked off to the side, leaving the Arusian to catch the breath she had been holding.

"We shall go to Arus tomorrow afternoon once my morning meetings are finished," he said after a moment, setting his empty wine glass down.

"Wait. 'We'?" She fixed him with a surprised gaze.

"I don't intent to leave you alone for a moment, my dear," he said lazily. She shivered.

"…It would probably be best if I went in first so they don't shoot you on sight," she said after a second of thinking.

"That would be suitable," he agreed. "In the meantime," he rose from the table and eyed her enthusiastically. "We should head to bed."

Allura rose warily from the table, eyeing him cautiously.

"…you mean go to sleep," she supplied hopefully. He watched her with a wicked glint in his eye.

"Eventually."

* * *

Allura found herself in a strange predicament. She stood in the shower of their bedchamber, blissfully left to her own devices to bathe, but Lotor was waiting with all certainty outside for her to finish. Her shower dragged on as she tried to steel her nerves.

The water splashed off the black marble around her, echoing oddly in the quiet room. She had run out of delays. The bathroom had no windows from which she could flee. The hot water hit her shoulders as she closed her eyes. _Arrogant beast_ , she thought darkly. Albeit relatively under-informed on the subject of physical courtship, Allura had a very good idea of what 'wifely duties' entailed.

She shut off the water with resignation. _Maybe he'll just take no for an answer,_ she thought hopefully as she toweled off. Time seemed to slow as she took extra care. Her hair itself was practically dry by the time she set the towel aside.

With little left to delay herself with, she walked across the bathroom to where the garments she had grabbed were resting. She unfurled the floor-length cotton gown. White. _How fitting._ She rolled her eyes before pulling it on over her head.

The breezy garment, like most of her other Drulishly-acquired pieces, hugged her body like a second skin before flowing to the floor from her hips. It, too, rested off her shoulders with little cap sleeves over her forearms.

Allura stood in front of the door and exhaled slowly before opening it suddenly. Lotor flashed her a grin from where he was laying in the bed. The blue satin sheets draped over his hips and his chest was strikingly bare. With a cry, Allura slammed the door shut again and bolted it.

"Allura, dammit…" she heard him grumble from the other side of the door. There was a rustling she couldn't place as she struggled to catch her breath. Her cheeks flushed hot at the memory of him. She had only looked for a second, but the image was emblazoned in her mind.

Lotor had been propped up on one side, his elbow under him as he watched the door. The sheets had pooled over his hip and between his thighs, but the rest of him had been as bare as a newborn babe. The muscles from his shoulders to his ankles were chiseled and raw, his chest defined and smooth, almost glinting in the flickering firelight.

A gentle knock sounded on the bathroom door as Allura cradled her mortified face in her hands. _There's just no way I can go through with this._

"Allura, I'm… come out, please." She said nothing, her back pressed against the door.

"…I'm wearing pants now," he added uncomfortably after a moment. She stared across the bathroom, breathing heavily as he murmured to her through the solid barrier. She thrust her fingers into her hair in a panic before exhaling. She turned back to face the door.

It took a couple of tries for Allura to unbolt the bathroom door; her hands trembled too much. Warily, she swung it open. Lotor glanced up from where his face had been buried in his palms. A quick look revealed his honesty – he was sitting on the edge of the bed, bare feet on the ground, satin black pants hugging his hips again. He looked to her as she stood in the doorway of the bathroom. Her skin was a strange mixture of ash and cherry, her eyes carefully concealing the torrent of emotions behind them. He felt as though he were staring into the eyes of a wild animal. Curious, but ready to bolt at a second's notice.

With practiced slowness, he straightened upright, and gestured carefully to the large bed. She swallowed nervously. Her lips were pressed together tautly as she took her first few steps into the room. His eyes flashed over her body before returning to her face. He was careful not to linger lest it frighten her. From what he had seen, however, she was magnificent. The gown kept little from his imagination and from the way it curved around her, it was apparent she wore nothing beneath it.

The haughty coldness with which she strode into the room and around the bed to her side startled him slightly. She wore the mask of a warrior heading into battle, not of a lover coming to bed. He stayed still, only turning his head to watch her circle the bed. It wasn't until she stood on the opposite side of the bed that his torso turned to continue tracking her movement. Allura watched him with frosty wordlessness.

Without warning she catapulted herself onto the mattress, grabbed for the sheets and yanked them up around her shoulders. Her body curled into a tight ball on her left side, her back to her new husband.

Lotor watched her for a moment, noting the tremble in her shoulders. Silently he stood up and moved near the door where he extinguished the lights. Only the firelight remained as he returned to the right side of the bed.

Allura pressed her eyes closed tightly.

 _Please, just go to sleep,_ she prayed silently. She felt the mattress shift behind her as it came to bear his weight as well. Her fingers curled tightly around the sheet at her shoulders and her knees tucked higher into her chest.

The wind left her lungs in a panicked exhale when the weight of one of his arms draped over her ribs. She squeezed her eyelids closed tighter and just braced. If Allura believed there were any chance she could win the fight against him she would have retaliated, but she knew that she was weaker, physically, by far.

She opened one eye when he didn't move. His chest pressed into her back and his bicep rested heavily against her ribcage just under her breasts. His forearm lay powerfully – but dormant, on the mattress in front of her. His fingers sprawled across the bedsheet near her collarbone, but the only touch he initiated was against her back and her ribs. Still, she waited for his next move.

None came.

Allura gradually let her breathing return to its normal cadence as she reveled in the sensation of being pinned under his arm. The hand before her was his right hand – his dominant sword arm.

A moment ticked by and Allura grew braver. Her cheeks were flaming red and she was pleased he couldn't see them. She reached up and with trembling hands, lightly brushed over the top of his hand. His fingers flexed out across the mattress in response and Allura froze. Gently, she repeated the subtle gesture. Once more, his hand repeated the flex, but did not otherwise move.

With fortifying courage, she shifted slightly so that she could trace the pads of her fingertips along his forearm. She stilled as a shudder vibrated behind her back. As it diminished and no other movement came about, she resumed her curious trace of his arm. Her digits gracefully danced across his veins and muscles, following the fascinating contours of a master swordsman.

Before she realized it, she had rolled back against him to touch his bicep on her ribs. Once more, she froze as he groaned behind her. Allura retracted her hands back to her chest in surprise.

"Don't stop," he whispered into her ear. His voice sounded off – hoarse and tense. It commanded an air of authority, but ultimately it was a request. She flushed as pink as her flight suit when she found herself obeying the command and returned her trembling hands to his arm, lightly dusting across unexplored terrain. It was foreign not only in that it was Lotor, but that it was male. She had never been so close to a male's body before and had the chance to study it closely. Many moments had been spent braced against Keith, but they had come and gone in the heart and heat of battle. This was an entirely different kind of heat.

Eventually she shifted completely onto her back and looked up into his eyes. He was propped up on his other arm, leaving his dominant arm lying lazily across her torso. The desire behind his eyes was unreadable as she made eye contact with him. Her heart trembled.

"You know," he murmured, his voice only holding a hint of a verbal sound with most of it being a whisper. "It doesn't hurt. It doesn't have to, anyway," he said. Cautiously, he moved the arm across her off her ribs and lazily drew it up her side. He paused as she stiffened when he touched the side of her breast. When she didn't panic, he carefully continued up to her shoulder and to her collarbone. His fingertips grazed the side of her neck and she flinched physically away from him.

"Despite what you may think – what I may have led you to believe in the past," he started, gently, leisurely tracing his fingers across the side of her throat from ear to shoulder in a gentle, stroking manner. "I won't hurt you. Not this time. Not ever again."

She closed her eyes and just braced against the lazy brush against her wounded skin.

"Does it hurt now?"

She cracked on eye open at him and thought about it carefully.

"…no," she whispered. Her voice vibrated like an earthquake of fear.

"I want-" He paused, considering his words carefully. "…I'd like… to try something, Allura. It won't be fast or unexpected. And you can say stop whenever you like, and I'll stop. Is that-"

"Stop!" Her blue eyes were wide, her breath frozen in her lungs. She watched him with fear and, as promised, his hand stilled in its gentle massage of her throat.

"I haven't started yet," he said after a moment, tilting his head to the side. "Give it a chance," he encouraged. Allura's eyes widened to the size of frightened saucers when his palm opened and spread over the width of her throat. It nearly covered the bruise his father had left.

She closed her eyes and trembled, none too pleased to have another Drule hand around her windpipe. Though, she had to admit, once she calmed down, it didn't feel… unpleasant. _On the contrary…_ She blinked, her cheeks blushing at the very subtle pressure his grasp on her presented while his thumb stroked in a lazy circle on the side.

"I…"

"There we go," he murmured gently to her, encouraging her to stay calm. His weight shifted slightly as he rose up off his side. He was very careful with his control on her flesh, knowing one wrong misstep of strength would end every chance he had.

No longer resting on his left hand but instead relying on the muscles in his thighs as he knelt next to her, he drew his left arm up her side and stroked her hair back from her face before leaning in.

The kiss surprised the blond. She had expected domination, possessiveness and greediness. Contrary to their wedding, his lips were soft and yielding, as if he were giving to her instead of taking. He offered the initiation, but left the rest up to her. He allowed her the room to explore. Even as Allura gasped at the tightening of his left hand on her hip, he did not push the kiss further, and instead allowed her the space to adjust. Much to her shock, she found herself cautiously returning the kiss and her hand even coming up to brush his hair by his face.

She leaned back to breathe deeply, and he, again, allowed her the freedom to set the pace. She stared up at him, her fingers absentmindedly brushing his hair out of his eyes while his hands lazily stroked both her throat and her hip.

"I…"

She trailed off, a crimson hue flooding her cheeks as she contemplated her next words. Lotor had made a bargain with her and he had, to her knowledge, kept every promise he had made. He had protected her from his father. She even thought she had seen the faintest hints of compassion earlier.

"…I trust you," she said, to both their surprise.

"It does not go unappreciated, I assure you," he murmured in a gravelly voice as he leaned in to reclaim her lips. Allura tensed slightly before relaxing more into his embrace.

* * *

 **So! Here it is! Additionally, I did something I have never tried to do before. I make no guarantees it's not an absolute dumpster fire. BUT. I continued writing this scene. I've never written anything explicit before, but I thought I would give it a try. Paranoid that I would get in trouble for posting it here, I've migrated the other part to my DA account. If you're totally happy with your imagination running wild from here, totally fine and thanks for reading this far!**

 **If, alternatively, you're curious for the what happens next section... it's here:** **crystalrebellion -deviantart - com** **/art/Hades-Covenant-Chapter-7-Addendum-688457964**

 **With the - before deviant and com replaced with . (The rest of the dashes are dashes.)**

 **If the link isn't working, you can hunt down Crystal Rebellion on Deviantart and you will find it.**

 **Again I make no promises. First try writing this kind of thing. Thanks for reading!**


	8. Perturbation

**Chapter 8 - Perturbation**

* * *

"Allura."

Allura heard her name in the warm haze of sleep. She rolled over and curled into a ball.

"Five more minutes, Nanny," she muttered. A nudge jostled her shoulder.

"Allura, wake up."

"It was Chitter. ...or Cheddar."

"Allura."

Her eyes fluttered open with the insistency of her name.

"Oh!" She gasped, startled by the tall frame of her new husband standing over her. He stepped back. She sat up slowly and looked around the room in a bit of a daze as memories returned. Lotor strode away from where she sat in the bed, his boots clicking on the marble floor.

"You can keep resting; I just wanted to let you know I'm going to my meetings." He sheathed his lazon sword at his side and adjusted his skull belt. He pulled the red cape over his shoulders and carefully settled the crest on his shoulder as he stood before the mirror. "I…" He paused, placing the crown on his head and brushing his hair back over his shoulders. "I didn't want you to wake up alone." He said quietly after a moment.

"Oh…" She trailed off. She was stunned by the strange admission. "…thank you," she replied after a moment.

"Do you need anything before I leave?" He glanced back to his lovely queen, settled in the pile of sheets regally. She looked stunning, even in the cotton pajamas she had changed into after their post-consummation shower. Allura stretched her arms over her head as she yawned.

"I'm alright." A blush graced her cheeks as he studied her for a moment longer. With a nod, he turned and exited the room. Allura sighed and flopped backward into the pillows as she reflected on her current situation.

 _Did we really… Did I..._ She blushed brightly, the subtle ache of unused muscles between her thighs answered her question.

"Look how far I've gone," she murmured softly, staring at the bedroom. _He better keep his promise about Arus_ , she thought darkly. "Oh Father, I'm glad you're not alive to see this." She shook her head once as she realized she was, quite literally, in bed with her enemy to protect her people. Allura closed her eyes and exhaled, trying to coax her body back to sleep. After several minutes passed, she realized she wouldn't be resting again anytime soon. Rolling off the bed, she winced as her feminine muscles protested the sudden movement. Straightening, she walked to the wardrobe and pulled the doors open.

She withdrew one of the remaining gowns and stripped down to her flesh. She hesitated. Her eyes fell to the dresser nearby and Allura carefully drew the top drawer open. Inside was an assortment of undergarments from essentially basic to shockingly sultry, and she remembered what she had told Mia before.

 _Is there really even a line anymore? Haven't I crossed them all already?_ She exhaled and tugged the lace onto her hips and latched the satin around her ribcage before tugging the dress on over her head. The white and gold gown was the only remaining clean garment that was a color she liked.

"Well, I'll be able to retrieve some of my actual clothes from Arus soon, at least," she reminded herself as she shut the wardrobe. Allura eased herself into a chair before a vanity and began brushing out her tussled hair.

She began at the ends of her mane and gently nudged the knots out before working her way up. As she finished, she froze as the door opened suddenly. Allura stayed silent at the small table, watching as Haggar let herself into the room, seemingly untroubled – or unaware – of the queen's presence.

The crone moved quietly toward the fireplace mantle, and Allura observed carefully as the witch picked up what resembled an incense burner. She cackled softly to herself.

"Seems to have worked well enough," she murmured to herself. Blue Cat meowed from the doorway. "Yes, my pet."

"Haggar," Allura called, rising from the chair cautiously. She set the brush down as the witch spun on heel to face the monarch in surprise. "What is that?" She nodded to the artifact the witch quickly covered with her hands.

"Nothing you need to worry yourself about, your highness," she said quickly. She stuffed the small piece into her robes as Allura glided over toward her and sniffed the air.

"That scent. I smelled that last night. What is that? Incense?"

"It's…" she trailed off, as if searching for the right words. "It was… the petals of one of the only flowers that grow on this planet. It's supposed to be relaxing," she explained cautiously.

Allura stared at the woman with intensity. A beat of tension passed between them as she pieced it together.

"It's an aphrodisiac." Allura's response wasn't a question. It was a statement that both dared and begged the old woman to defy it.

"What? No, no, it's just a relaxing…"

"Haggar, look me in the eye and tell me that Lotor wasn't burning an aphrodisiac last night," she instructed firmly.

The witch regarded Allura carefully, her golden eyes narrowing. When a full moment passed without either saying a word, the queen unleashed an aggravated sound that rivaled a Drulish warcry as the foreign sensation of anger rushed through her.

"I'm going to _kill him_ ," she howled in fury. She grabbed her navy drape and crown on the way out the door as it slammed behind her.

"She's fitting in well," Haggar murmured appreciatively in the wake of the gentle Arusian's fascinating and unexpected wrath. Blue Cat echoed his agreement.

* * *

Lotor stepped out of the meeting room and shuffled some of the papers around in his arms. He exhaled. Negotiating was difficult. He much preferred the more simplistic approach of making demands and having them met, but with the way the Empire was growing, it would be impossible to continue to operate that way without severe repercussions. He found the most exhausting part to be the listening aspect. He could no longer just explain his side and be done with it; he had to listen, process, and then procure a solution. He groaned. How Allura managed such a feat with such consistency baffled him.

"How _dare_ you!"

Lotor spun on his heel as Allura stormed around the corner in a flurry of fire.

"Allura, my dear," he reached out to embrace his bride as she slapped his hand away.

"An _aphrodisiac?"_ She hissed at him. She wanted to scream in his face, but she wasn't terribly keen on announcing the previous night's activity to the entire castle, instead settling upon a seething whisper.

His jaw ticked as he quickly realized the situation.

"Allura, it was-"

"What, exactly?" She crossed her arms over her chest angrily.

"Why are you so upset? It… helped," he supplied carefully. The expression of unadulterated rage on her face quickly told him it was the wrong thing to say. She closed her eyes and exhaled through her nose as she fought to calm her temper.

"I… rely heavily on my instincts, Lotor. And I thought… I could trust what I felt," she explained carefully, a tremble in her voice. After a moment, she opened her eyes. "I thought I felt something that might exist." No tears formed, but her eyes shimmered with unshed water. "And it was artificial. Something you created to… Just to get what you wanted. How can I trust my feelings when you… fabricate them?"

He stared at her, thunderstruck. He felt the earth shift beneath him as the magnitude of her words settled in.

"You felt something?"

She drew her hand back as if to strike him and paused. Her fingers curled into a fist suspended in the air, trembling as she controlled the unusual emotion possessing her. A second passed by and she dropped it to her side.

"Clearly not. Obviously, I was incorrect," she informed him coolly. "I'll be taking up residence in an adjacent bedchamber from here on out, since I can't seem to trust myself."

Lotor felt the air rush from his lungs as if she _had_ struck him. In many ways, the cold distance she offered him instead was worse.

"You can't do that," he grumbled. "You're my-"

"The queen," she articulated back with a strange, newfound bravery, cutting him off. "And I'll do what I please, Lotor." Her eyes narrowed and all Lotor could do was rub his temple as he processed the near-violent shift in power between them. Allura exhaled shakily, hiding her own surprise at her bold fury.

"You can't give me orders," he finally said. Allura just shrugged with a mysterious smile.

"I don't have to do what you tell me. And I won't. I have fulfilled my obligations to our agreement."

"You were going to slap me."

"But I didn't."

His eyes focused intently on her.

"Why not? Nothing has ever stopped you from that before."

"...I can, in fact, control my emotions, Lotor," she said carefully. "I'll prove it from here on out."

When Lotor just glared in response, Allura tilted her chin up defiantly.

"Woman," he growled and she just shook her head once.

"When you take something sacred… and… and vulnerable and just… just toy with it…" she shook her head once more, stopping herself mid-sentence. "I can't even begin to explain to you how angry I am," she whispered, her shoulders trembling. "I should have never trusted you from the beginning. Or myself!"

"Allura, it was just-" He froze mid-sentence when she stared at him. Ice-cold blue eyes pinned him, shimmering behind the frigid tears she held back. She crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for his reply. He had none. After a moment of helpless silence passed between them, she continued.

"Yes, that's the problem. It was _just_ something to you," she murmured. While her fury had calmed, her pain still lingered and he felt more animosity from her soft words than the louder ones. She just gave a single toss of her head and turned to leave him. "Let me know when you're finished. I'm ready to head to Arus. I'm anxious to speak with my team and clear the air." Without any further explanation, she disappeared down the hallway.

Lotor frowned.

"You still don't know what you did wrong, do you?" Haggar piped up from the background.

"Why the hell did you tell her?"

"She asked," she witch said unhelpfully with a shrug. "And technically, I didn't tell her. If you haven't figured out that she's clever yet, you're an idiot."

Lotor's eyes narrowed at the crone.

"Careful, Haggar," he warned. The witch only shrugged again in response.

"I'll admit, it is a bit refreshing to see that she's capable of anger. I was beginning to think she was too soft to really settle in here. Clearly she can hold her own."

"Allura has never been for want for fury… Though it would be nice if she stopped directing it at me," he muttered dryly. "She'll come around," he said after a moment.

"If you say so," she hedged, turning away from the king to head back to her laboratory.

"You don't think so?"

Haggar paused and looked back to him.

"A young girl's heart isn't something to be toyed with, you know. Not if you ever hope to have any claim on it, anyway."

"What do you know about love, Haggar?" Lotor rolled his eyes at the old woman.

"I used to be young and beautiful once, don't forget," she tutted him as she continued down the hallway. Lotor's lips pressed together.

"She'll calm down," he reasoned, more to himself than anyone else. He glanced over the papers in his arms and shook his head. He debated abandoning his last meeting to chase after her, but given her current state of molten rage, he decided it would be safer to give her time to relax.

* * *

Lotor stalked into the Throne Room and scoured the area.

"Where is she?" He hadn't been able to locate his wife anywhere. She wasn't in their bedchambers and none of his staff had seen her in the last few hours. His voice trembled between thunderous rage and concern. Zarkon was no longer a threat to her, but he worried more traitors lingered in the shadows.

The servants glanced up from where they were working and only shrugged to their king; they had not seen the queen lately, either.

"Fools! She was supposed to go to Arus with me, where the hell-"

"Hush," Haggar chided him gently as she entered the room.

"Witch! Do you know where she is?"

"Oh? Who?" Haggar feigned ignorance, her irritation from his prior display still flaring.

"Allura, of course!"

"Oh, Allura," she started, making a show of thinking deeply. "Yes… I think I did see her recently… where was it… What was she doing… Oh right, she flew to Arus about an hour ago in Blue Lion."

Lotor felt his blood pressure throb in his forehead. His rage escalated so quickly, he was left with little response other than a blank stare at the witch. For the sake of his own sanity, Lotor took a deep breath. Eyelids draped over his serpentine eyes as he reigned in his temper. Each word he spoke was articulated with a terrifying coldness and control.

"Why. Was I not. Informed."

"You were in meetings," she replied easily, untroubled by the Drule's temper. Having faithfully served Zarkon, there was little that rattled the ancient sorceress.

"Where was Blue Lion hidden." He reached out for a scrap of information he had been trying to unearth for days from Allura.

"No idea. She just stormed out of the castle. Blue Lion launched several minutes later."

"Why didn't she wait for me," he finished, the taut tremble in his tone dissipating as he calmed down slightly.

Haggar just eyed him, waiting for him to answer his own question for himself. Lotor cursed.

"Prepare my cruiser. I'm going after her."

* * *

Lotor pushed past the confused guards at the entrance of the Castle of Lions. He didn't notice how untroubled they were to see the Drule king. He came into the Great Hall of the castle just as Allura and Keith exited from a hallway into the same room.

The lethal look in the commander's eyes told the king that Allura had already briefed her friends on the situation. Her hand grasped Keith's arm quickly when he flinched in Lotor's direction.

"Do not ruin everything I fought for," she murmured to her commander. Keith's body stilled as the whispered words reached the Drule's excellent ears, but the venom in his expression lingered.

"One wrong move, Allura. I swear, I'll end him," he whispered back before taking his arm back from her grasp and storming out of the room. She glanced over her shoulder to watch her retreating commander. She sighed.

"Oh good, Lotor's here," Lance's voice called out with false cheerfulness as he, Pidge and Hunk emerged from the same room Allura and Keith had recently vacated. The Drule leader paused to regard the dangerous look from the pilot of Red Lion.

"Be nice," she chastised him gently. "I need to go after Keith," she explained as she slipped past her teammates.

"He's angry, Princess. He has a right to be, too." The pilot's expression softened when it left Lotor and fixed on Allura.

"You all should be terribly cross with me, to be honest," she agreed.

"I can't be. It makes sense now. As long as everyone stays true to their word," his eyes slid to Lotor. "Let me know what I can do to support you," he continued gently, glancing back to Allura. "I want to help."

She nodded and gave his hands a squeeze.

"Thank you for being so understanding in all of this. It… it's a great weight off my shoulders to know my friends are still my friends. I was worried you would hate me."

"Allura, I don't think anyone could hate you," Pidge piped up, coming to stand near his hotheaded teammate.

"Just the same, I gave you almost no information and let you find out what was happening through the public media channel and I apologize I wasn't able to share the details before now."

"It makes sense – it wasn't stuff you could say over the communication line. We get it, Princess. Wait – Queen? What do we call you now?"

Allura tossed her head back and laughed genuinely before tossing her arms around Hunk.

"Whatever you would like," she answered. "I need to go after Keith, though, I'll talk with you all more later." Hunk nodded as she peeled off of him and made her way toward the door the commander had exited through.

"What about me?" Lotor crossed his arms angrily over his chest. Allura stilled and turned to look back at him, her expression cool and otherwise unreadable.

"What about you?" Her sharp words startled him. "You're free to wander. I informed my guardsmen you might be coming. They're aware of the situation. It's only fair you have roam of my castle as I do yours."

Lance whistled softly at the snap from the blonde as she turned away to follow Keith.

"She's cross with you," he murmured quietly. "Not sure if that's been the state of things lately or if that's new but… haven't seen her quiet like that before."

"Well, there was that one time I ate the chocolate cake she was saving for the minister's birthday," Hunk mused thoughtfully.

"Oh, right. She was pretty angry then, too," Pidge piped up. "Lance and I actually took bets on if she would kill you or not."

"Who won?" Hunk glanced between his two friends, curious to which thought he would die.

"I'm not answering that," Lance said with a smirk.

"I could go for some cake right about now," the Yellow Lion pilot said, his mind honing quickly in on food.

Lotor just stared in open shock at the trio, completely caught off-guard by the casual attitude between them.

"How are you so calm?"

Lance turned and fixed the Drule with his gaze.

"We trust her. Without question. She's asked us to treat you civilly in so long as you keep your end of your… arrangement. We support her. I don't have to like it to honor her wishes. One broken oath, Lotor, and it will be my absolute pleasure to introduce you to the business end of Red Lion personally," he said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Moreover, I'm relieved Allura seems to be doing okay," Pidge chimed in. "The situation didn't seem right at first, but now it makes much more sense." He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Hunk nodded in agreement.

"Dammit, Allura," Lotor muttered, pushing past the Space Explorers to follow his wife. He was subconsciously surprised to not be met with more resistance from them as he shoved open the door and strode down the hallway Allura had disappeared into. He broke into a jog, unsure where she had gone.

Lotor stopped as he came around a corner and two sets of chilly eyes fixed on him. Allura looked over from where she had been speaking quietly with Keith. She withdrew her palm from her commander's and let it fall back to her side. Lotor noticed a lion key remained.

Allura looked back to the Black Lion pilot and grasped his hand with both hers, closing his fingers around the sacred relic.

"Please, keep it. At least for now until things settle down. I want it kept safe," she explained to him. Keith finally tore his eyes away from Lotor to look back to Allura.

"On my life. I will keep Blue Lion safe." She smiled gently, stepping back from him. She eyed the closed fist around her key with a forlorn sadness.

"It's best this way," she added. "Safest."

"Allura," Keith started as the former princess turned away from him. She paused and glanced back. "I don't know if anyone has expressed this to you yet, and in hindsight I regret my admittedly hasty reaction before, but… thank you. Just know there is gratitude abound, from your people, your planet, and so many others. They just don't know who to bestow it on," he said reassuringly. He lowered his voice. "And if you ever need a bail-out at a moment's notice, we _will_ be there. And we will handle any consequences that follow on your behalf. We're here for you," he finished with an encouraging squeeze on her shoulder.

With one last distasteful look toward Lotor, he turned and stormed away down the hallway. Allura sighed softly and wrapped her arms around her torso as Lotor approach from behind.

"I'm headed to my chambers to pack a suitcase," she replied before beginning her path down a different hallway. Lotor followed without invitation and she did not stop him.

* * *

"You know I could have all the clothes you ever wanted sent to you room," he muttered, leaning against the dresser as he watched her intently pile her clothes into a suitcase to take with her back to Doom.

"I don't want your things," she murmured quietly as she piled in gowns and undergarments alike. Nighties and training clothes also were stuffed into the bag. Allura grasped a second travel bag and began stuffing high heels and boots into it with tempered irritation.

"I know you're angry about-"

"I don't want to even speak of _that_ ," she hissed out before he could finish his sentence. Lotor closed his mouth slowly and stared at the woman before him carefully.

"Allura, we need to talk about what happened," he implored gently.

"No, there is nothing else to say."

"Allura!"

" _What!"_ She turned to face him suddenly. Silence cut through the room.

He watched her carefully, drinking in her demeanor and body language. Her chest heaved with deep breaths as she stared him down. Restrained anger laced behind her eyes. Her skin was paler than usual and he noticed a hint of perspiration on her forehead. Slender digits coiled into fists and her lips were parted to allow for her heavier breath as she gave him her full attention.

"I… Why didn't you wait for me like you said you would," he attempted to diffuse the rising tension by shifting the subject. Allura snorted and turned back to her closet, pulling more clothes out.

"I reconsidered. It seemed more strategically appropriate to come here alone. What do you think they would have done if they saw a Drule cruiser land before I could explain anything?"

Lotor blinked, surprised. He hadn't considered that.

"Where did you hide Blue Lion on my planet," he asked, trying to figure out the mystery. Allura glanced over to him.

"You're really interested in that information, aren't you?"

"Like I said before, it's impressed me and I want to know how you managed it."

"You're not going to let it go, will you?"

"Not until you tell me," he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I don't suppose it's going to irritate you not to know, will it?"

"I do not like not having answers," he said slowly. His heart skipped a beat at the slow grin that curled at Allura's lips. Had her eyes been less frosty, it would have been a delicious sight. Coupled with her current demeanor, however, it looked uncharacteristically cruel and frighteningly out of place on the woman.

"Then it shall be my delight to keep that information from you," she said after a moment's pause. She turned back and latched up the suitcase and zipped the bag closed. Grabbing both, she moved to the door.

"Allura!"

"I'm allowed to be upset, Lotor," she said, pausing to look at him. She sighed, her demeanor softening. "I am. Emotions of other people aren't something you can just control with demands. I know you're used to always getting your way, but feelings don't work like that," she said gently. Allura shifted the bag to her other hand so she could reach up and touch his cheek gently. "It hurt. You hurt me. Again," she added with a whisper. She didn't miss the slight flinch beneath her palm at her last word.

"What can I do," he said after a moment. It took an iron will not to reach toward her, but he knew the ice was thin between them.

"Give me time," she requested. Her hand fell back to her side. Before she could retake her second bag with her free hand, he reached over and collected it for her.

"Let me," he said. When she stared at him intently, he added a word he was unused to saying. "…please." A hint of a genuine smile twitched across her lips and she nodded once.

"I'm finished here for now, however. I've collected my personal things as well as any electronic equipment I need to do my work from Doom if you'd like to return. Things are feeling a little… tense at the moment here."

"What about Keith?"

"He needs time, as well. I think, as long as I stay in close contact with them, things will be alright," she said. "I hope."

"You're ready to leave Arus already?" He frowned down at the woman. She nodded once.

"I can work remotely. What would you do while I stayed here?"

"I…" He trailed off, realizing her point. In his hasty rush to chase her, he had brought very little with him. He would be left to his own devices wandering a castle that was unwelcoming to him at its very best.

"Exactly. I can work from Doom, and I think extracting you from here will ease the tension between everyone," she said. "I'll meet you there."

"You won't ride with me?"

Allura shook her head once.

"I'll take a small cruiser from my hangar. That way if I need to fly to Arus or somewhere, I'll have my own vehicle," she said.

"Not Blue Lion?" He raised an eyebrow at her but didn't divulge that he had overheard her conversation with the commander. She shook her head once.

"Not at this time. Maybe in the future once things settle down," she elaborated. She reached for her bag in his hand. Instead, he gently took her other suitcase.

"I'll take care of these," he said. She frowned at him for a moment then sighed and nodded. Allura could recognize he was trying, even if he were still doing it in his own, commanding way.

"Thank you," she said before turning to head for the hangar. "I'll meet you there," she repeated. Lotor sighed and watched the woman he admired retreat down the corridor before taking her bags with him back to where his cruiser was parked outside. He wasn't terribly certain where he had gone wrong, but he realized the long path in front of him to make it right.

"Dammit, Allura. Always so stubborn," he whispered to himself as he prepared to head back to Planet Doom.

* * *

 **Hooray another chapter, thank you for reading! Please feel free to let me know what you did, and didn't, like!**


	9. Perception

**Chapter 9 - Perception**

* * *

Allura glanced up as the door to the study swung open. She stared for a moment at the new king before looking back down to the parchment strewn across the table before her. She sat at the massive table, her legs tucked up on the large chair she perched upon. Surrounded by the silence of tomes and comforted by a gentle hearth, Allura returned to the composition she inscribed upon the paper before her.

Her fingers held a large, ornate fountain pen that was marginally too heavy and slightly too long for her small hands, but her script remained neat and elegant with each stroke, a deep blue ink glistening in the firelight behind her trailing hand.

"What are you doing?"

The queen remained bowed over her calligraphy as Lotor spoke. Only once she finished the sentence she was working on, placed the pen back into the inkwell near her and folded her hands on top of the table did she raise her eyes. Lotor felt a hitch in his temper. He did not like to be kept waiting, and yet he found himself staring across the room at the single woman in the entire galaxy that dared do so.

"Correspondences," she said simply, tossing him a careful look.

"To whom are you corresponding?" His tone remained clipped, but he kept his annoyance reigned in as she once more waited before answering, her eyes never leaving his.

"People."

The irritated twitch in Lotor's jaw did not go unnoticed, but he was steadfast in his efforts to appear calm before the easily-riled and swiftly-frightened Arusian.

"Allura, you can't keep holding me at arm's length," he said irritably. His perseverance had waned thinner every day that his bride had remained aloof and distant. It had been less than a week since she had sought separate bedchambers, but each hour grated on him like glass. She drew another blank piece of paper before her and after redrawing the pen, she began deftly scribing another page.

"I don't see why I can't," she muttered tartly, not raising her eyes to look at him as she spoke. "Seems to be safer that way for me. I've given you everything I promised I would, Lotor. Our business transaction is concluded as far as I'm concerned." Had she bothered to anoint him with her eyes, she might have caught the explosive flash behind his gaze before he physically followed in kind.

"Allura!" His temperance shattered and he stormed across the room and slammed his palm down on the table across from her. She gasped in surprise and leaped away, droplets of stray ink falling over the pages. Her false bravado quickly capsized as his anger flared.

She clasped her hands before her chest and watched him through wide, frightened eyes. Lotor exhaled slowly, closing his own as he realized he would only drive her further from him if he continued. After a moment of tense silence passed between them, he breathed deeply and opened them again, his chiseled features softening only slightly.

"These are addressed to planets that are direct partners with Arus, aren't they?" he commented quietly, lifting one of the papers she had abandoned on the table. "This is marked for Pollux." His eyes snapped to her and Allura just watched him, shoulders trembling slightly. She nodded once.

"I… I've already had verbal communications with… with the people who needed more immediate disclosure… I'm assuring the others of Arus' intent to continue business as normal," she explained carefully. Her fidgeting fingers betrayed her anxiety.

He stared across the table at her and drank in her form, acutely aware of the fear in her eyes. She stood recoiled from the table, grateful for the heavy piece of furniture between them, her hands tensed and her body braced to flee.

"Sit," he gestured to the chair she had backpedaled out of. Allura just shook her head once.

"No. You're angry," she whispered.

"And that scares you?"

Her golden head bobbed up and down twice in a silent response.

"Dammit, why can't you just trust me?"

Allura hesitated, averting her eyes away from him as she genuinely contemplated his question. His eyes snapped to her hands as the elegant digits twisted so dramatically as she wrung them, he worried she might injure herself inadvertently.

"I don't know how," she said honestly. He stayed silent, watching her critically. Her body squirmed, unable to stand still under his intense gaze. "I don't… I can't… …I'm sorry," she finished helplessly as she struggled to articulate her confusion.

"You did before," he started carefully, reticent to bring up the night they had spent together. When Allura paled a little, he growled. His muscles tensed as he leaned over the table she had been sitting at, his palms spread around the papers. His eyes never left her.

"I made a mistake," she said. His eyes narrowed on her dangerously and she immediately averted her gaze to the floor, a blush staining her cheeks.

"We are not a mistake," he said. After pushing off the table, he courted around the heavy piece to approach her. Allura shrank back against the wall, watching him with open panic as he approached.

"Don't," she began to protest but stopped when his stride did not waver. She darted to the side in an attempt to escape him, but the former prince was far too quick. His hand closed around her forearm and drew the long-coveted woman to him bodily. She squirmed in response, struggling to break from his grasp.

"Let me go," she demanded, tugging on her arm as his palm snaked around her back.

"I will not," he replied coldly. "I've been patient with you this long, and I want what is due me, Allura."

"You have your dues," she cried out in frustration, her physical protest to his hold became more panicked and less articulate.

"You keep me away!" His voice raised to his familiar level of arrogance and Allura's fear bloomed fresh in her chest. Her hand pulled back to strike at him in the only way she knew to free herself, but the king had learned her tells too well.

His palm clasped around the offending wrist like a manacle, catching her strike mid-air before she landed the blow on him. He held her taut, one hand still gripping her forearm and the other like steel about her wrist.

"Because you _hurt me_ ," she begged softly.

"Allura, I do not! I would never!" Lotor's temper swelled even more as he pressed her back into the wall, struggling to fight the urge to claim his conquest all over again. Fire roared through his veins and flooded heat into his loins. The scent of the queen encompassed and consumed him, leaving him nearly blind to anything but her. The prospect of calming himself was a quickly-vanishing possibility… until Allura whispered something that chilled his blood completely.

"But you're hurting me right now…"

The haze of fervor clouding his vision diminished instantly and he stayed very still, taking in the woman before him with unbiased logic.

Gowned in her pink and white dress, her entire body was frozen mid-recoil from him as she fought to push him off her. Every muscle in her form braced for combat and her head bowed before him. Sunkissed hair draped over her shoulders and pooled around her face, hiding it from his view. The dainty, delicate wrist clutched in his fist trembled as he held it away from her, her other arm tensing in an effort to break free as well.

He released her and stumbled back and her body slipped to the floor. She drew her hands quickly back to her chest along with her knees, bowing her head over them as she struggled to calm herself.

"Allura," he breathed, the back of his thighs coming to rest against the table as he retreated away from her, stunned.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. She didn't raise her head as it rested against her knees. "I don't mean to try and hurt you. I just… I get scared. I don't know how else to communicate with you other than force. …I don't think you can hear my words, Lotor. I would love very much to speak with you, but I do not think that you understand me."

She rubbed her wrist delicately in her lap, nearly hidden from his eyes behind her hair and knees. He watched as her body physically flinched when he released a growl of frustration unchecked. For a rare moment in his life of aggression and force, Lotor felt a sense of helplessness. He had no idea what words to offer her or what action to take. A strange sense of loss swam around him and echoed in a softer emotion he had never been exposed to before.

Without any other reasonable reaction, Lotor was left with only one. He cursed. Allura jumped slightly, but kept her eyes on the ground as she massaged her arms in the offended locations. She was nearly certain her wrist would bruise, and she knew that if he saw that, he was liable to become angry at the sight. The sound of a chair moving startled her.

She glanced up to find Lotor had eased himself down into the seat she had vacated previously. He had turned it slightly to face her better, but it marked an intention not to approach her again. His elbows rested on his knees, his hands clasped together hanging before him. The most striking part of the picture was his bowed head. Snow-colored locks fell like liquid over his shoulders and around him, brushing against his thighs.

Defeat.

Allura blinked, feeling her own fear wane marginally at the weakness he displayed before her. Hidden in the royal study, the ferocious, arrogant king revealed an aspect of himself he dared show no one else, and the queen softened at the sight of it.

 _Perhaps he isn't unreachable, after all,_ she thought.

Lotor heard the rustle of fabric before him. He listened intently, trying to discern what movements Allura made without raising his eyes. She was so easily frightened… _And so fragile,_ he thought, curling his palm into a fist in frustration. He hadn't meant to hurt her. He hadn't realized how tight he was holding her. She was his anomaly. She was a fierce and resilient warrior, hardened and stubborn, yet her body, mind and heart were soft and exceedingly breakable. How was it possible for someone with such strength to shatter so easily? Using enough force to physically overpower the temperamental woman was enough to cause her harm, and yet she was easily able to wield the same amount of strength back at him.

"I don't know what you must think of me," she said after a moment of quiet thoughts of her own. Lotor glanced up to her, unable to look away any longer. Her own gaze was averted, regarding a bookshelf off to the side as if it were infinitely more fascinating. Her knees had dropped away from her chest and she sat in a less-defensive, reclined position against the wall with her hands still resting in her lap. He didn't dare say a word, but simply waited for her to continue. After several moments of frustrating silence, she indulged him, though her eyes never wavered from their focus away from him.

"I can't imagine what sort of person you take me for," she whispered, her voice dropping in volume drastically. He felt his muscles tense with restraint as tears budded in the corner of her eyes. "I have done everything I promised I would. I have even gone to Arus – and returned. Do you still fear I'll flee? Is that why you fight so hard to control every moment, every word, every action? Are you afraid I'll betray my oath? I…" she trailed off, a tear trailing down her cheek that she haphazardly brushed away with more annoyance than necessary. She sniffed, calming herself.

"Allura," he murmured.

"I could understand at the beginning. I mean… if given the chance I've never… opted to linger with you," she said. "But I made a promise. And I… I have kept it. Completely. And I still can't help but feel like I'm in a prison in all this," she finished with a sigh, looking back to her lap.

"You are not a prisoner," he commented, finally finding his voice.

"Perhaps not literally," she agreed. "You won't let me out of your sight. You are angry when I don't do what you want me to. You followed me to Arus in a fit of fury, even though by our arrangement… I have every right to do that. You… you… I don't understand this desire to control everything," she finished.

"You didn't need time," he said suddenly, the conversation they had had nearly a week ago on Arus suddenly making sense to the prince. "You needed space."

"I am now an, apparently important, entity in the superstructure of an entire race that rather despises me. I am struggling to learn customs, norms, dialects and languages…" She shook her head once, the overwhelming sensation crashing over her again. "I feel so strange and foreign here, and I do not feel safe."

"No one will harm you," he said firmly.

"Zarkon did. …You do. Why fear the people when there are the two of you? You've both been hurting me since the day my father first crossed Zarkon's path," she said softly, cradling her shoulders. "He burned my planet. Took my people. This culture of war and conquest is…" She trailed off, a thought striking her. Without warning, she leveled her gaze on him.

"Imagine a society that was built around kindness, Lotor. The most powerful person wasn't the strongest or the most vicious, but instead they were the kindest. They were the first to offer help, the last to take aid. They were able to provide for everyone else around them, and they were _loved_ for that ability. They never harmed another soul, and competition was about generosity. What would you think about that society?"

"Utterly absurd," he muttered, startled by the shift in discussion. "Why give when you could take?"

"…I feel the exact same way about Drules. Why take when you could give?"

The heavy silence that breathed between them was rich with prominence. A profound moment of communication passed between the two, long overdue.

"War causes pain. It hurts people. Even the things you desire – the slaves, the money, the jewels… war can destroy them before you claim them. But… in a reality where everyone gives what they can, no one loses."

"It's a false society, Allura. In a situation like that, a single, corrupt individual would bring it down in a heartbeat."

"True, the concept only works if _everyone_ is genuinely invested in it. But isn't it worth that chance? There would be so many more rewards to reap by working in tandem with others, rather than just killing everyone who doesn't agree with you."

"Or you can build an empire around people doing exactly what you want because they fear the repercussions if they don't. There is no concern for disloyalty, and if anyone tries to overstep, they can be quickly laid aside."

"That's not loyalty. That's just fear. Look at Pollux," she said as she redirected the conversation back to something more relevant. "They feared you, but they weren't loyal to you. The moment they had a better option, they left. The instant that someone else could protect them, they sought that refuge. Fear is no way to govern. If you are even just a little kind, they rally around you. When the fire falls from the sky, they still stand behind you because they believe in that," Allura insisted.

"If you are too kind, then you have no will to fight when someone comes for you. Cruelty protects your people, Allura. Not kindness. Fear keeps them bound to you."

She shook her head once.

"I could never be cruel. It hurts me to hurt others," she said softly. "Perhaps that makes me a weak ruler in the end."

"Or…" Lotor trailed off, carefully rising from his chair. She glanced up to him as he approached her slowly. He deliberately extended his hand down to her in a way that wouldn't alarm her. "Perhaps it's somewhere in between," he uttered, a strange light flickering in his eyes as he watched her.

"What?" She whispered softly, placing her hand in his palm before she realized she was doing it. His fingers closed around hers and eased her to her feet.

"What if… the greatest empire, the strongest army and the most victorious leadership... requires both," he explained, looking down into her eyes with an unreadable expression on his face. "Balance."

Allura couldn't articulate why she felt his words were more profound than any he had ever uttered before, but a blush bloomed unchecked across her cheeks and for a rare moment, she did not feel fear.

"Perhaps so…" She trailed off, lost in the look on his face.

His hand reached up to touch her cheek and with a very practiced, controlled movement, he leaned toward her. Lotor felt the woman stiffen in his grasp, but despite both her hands being free, she did not push away nor strike him. He allowed her the freedom to do so if she so chose.

Her palms came to rest on his chest and her fingers curled into the fabric of his tunic as his lips brushed lightly against hers, feeling the tremble in her own stance. With little reprimand, he feathered over hers once more before kissing her with more intensity.

Allura took a single step away, her back coming to rest against the wall. He matched her stride, careful to hear her protests; yet she offered none and her digits still laced with his fabric. His other hand reached for her waist and he pulled himself closer. Lotor released a little of the restraint on his insatiable hunger for the woman and he deepened the intensity of their connection.

She whimpered in response, but her only protest was to gasp for air briefly before submerging herself back into his embrace.

Lotor found himself genuinely startled by the gentleness she offered him. His conquest was not one of taking or devouring, and despite the heat the latter evoked in him, her soft offering generated foreign warmth for him. It didn't come from a place of predatory lust; instead he felt nearly humbled by the shaky trust she yielded him. Despite her fear and pain, Allura was still trying to reach out to him.

The king startled himself by his next action; he eased off the kiss himself and stood over her while both caught their breath. He glanced down to catch her avert her gaze, a blush staining her cheeks. He stepped back to give her space and her wide eyes snapped to him in open confusion.

"Allura," he began, reaching out his hand to her. "I'd like to show you something, if you'll come with me."

She eyed him dubiously before nodding and placing her palm in his once more.

"What is it?" She glanced to him curiously, the blush from their heated exchange fading from her skin as her curiosity bloomed. Lotor reveled in the sensation of her willingly taking his hand again.

"Something I think you might have missed before. I believe you were too overwhelmed at the coronation to see it."

She frowned at him. He paused by the door leading from the study and picked up something he had set aside when he first entered. Folded in his hands were both the deep blue shawl and her crown. She stared at them wide-eyed for a moment and at his offer, she nodded. Allura allowed him to settle the royal drape across her shoulders before placing the crown upon her head.

"They are not just clothes, Allura," he explained. "They _are_ you."

"Yours is red," she commented off-handedly, pointed to the red and gold garment she had seen on Zarkon countless times.

"Red and blue are both considered royal colors," he replied.

"Is red reserved for the kings or something?" He flashed a fanged grin at her question, enamored by her perception.

"No, they are both equal, but I rather thought red would clash with pink." He turned and led the stunned woman out of the study without waiting for a response.

"You picked that knowing that I would prefer to wear something like this under it?" Allura finally caught her voice as her mind settled from the stunning news. Lotor shrugged causally.

"If you don't actually care for pink, you hide it very well."

Allura felt struck by the thought. He had chosen things to suit her known desires. They walked down the hall in silence, the queen trying to wrap her mind around the enigmatic man in front of her. Lotor was hard, fast and cruel. He was lethal and represented everything that she stood against. …At least she had thought so.

"I haven't seen Zarkon around lately," she mentioned weakly, switching the topic again. Lotor just rolled his shoulders in response.

"I've been keeping him busy," he said cryptically.

"Well… I suppose that's… good," she supplied with a hint of question in her voice.

"Here we are, wait here a moment," he said as he came to a stop in front of a set of double doors. Allura nodded, a frown marring her features as he slipped through the door, closing it quickly behind him.

She waited. Noise came from the far side of the heavy door, cheers from the sound of it, but Allura could hardly make any of it out through the steel. She fidgeted. After what felt like an eternity passed, the door opened and Lotor beckoned her to join him.

Warily, she stepped through the threshold and found herself standing beside one of the two thrones overlooking the coliseum. She paled dangerously and Lotor gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"They aren't fighting right now, see?" He pointed down to where the two combatants were kneeling to each other. "And they won't until you leave, unless you ask to see the show," he said quietly. Allura blinked in surprise.

"You stopped the match to bring me out here?"

"Yes," he said carefully. "Not to see those two, but to see _them_ ," he said, gesturing to the filled coliseum. He lept onto a platform in front of the thrones, and his words echoed out to the crowd.

"Loyal subjects, I present to you your shy queen, making a rare public appearance!" He glanced back down to her and once more held out his hand to her. She shook her head once.

"Oh no, I can't-"

With more force than he would have cared to use, he grasped her hand and despite wanting to give her space to make choices, he pulled her up next to him where the entire crowd could see her.

"Lotor, what are you doing, they hate-" She paused as everyone around her broken into a deafening roar. She winced and braced, but it wasn't booing or jeering. She took a closer look.

"Are you sure about that," he whispered in her ear, standing proudly beside the woman as she stared openly out at all the Drule and Drule-supporters that cheered their enthusiasm, loyalty and faith. Within minutes, a chant of "Fierce Is Our Queen!" broke out in the crowd and Allura gasped in surprise.

"It has been many generations since there has been a queen, Allura," he whispered in her ear, holding her with a firmness that inspired protection, but would yield if she decided to leave his side. "They _adore_ you."

"I… I had no idea," she whispered.

"I know you didn't." He paused as the crowd quieted and pockets of civilians chanted for her to say something. She looked to him, panicked.

"You don't have to," he said. "But if you want to, they're listening. Your people are listening to you, my dear." The weight of what he said struck her and the fear evaporated. _Her people._ She hadn't just married Lotor to save Arus. He intended to share his power and as such, she had adopted an entire empire of people.

Nervousness still abound, Allura stepped forward and it felt as though the stadium plunged into silence. Even the contenders had raised their eyes to watch her, enraptured.

She spun to look at Lotor.

"What do I say? I don't know how to talk of combat or battle!" She whispered frantically. He grinned at her lazily.

"Then don't. Say whatever you desire to, Allura. Be you. Be authentic." He laughed darkly at the familiar scowl she gave him before turning back to the group before her. The silence echoed on and she exhaled once and clasped her hands in front of her chest and bowed her head to gather her thoughts. Raising her eyes to the sea of people, she did what came most naturally to her. She smiled.

"Hello. It's nice to finally meet all of you. I am Allura," she said. The sentences sounded so innocuously mundane that she almost cringed at her words. Oration had never been her strongest suit. The spectators, however, devoured them with a fervor. Even Lotor, standing behind her had to admit he had never seen the crowd get so enthusiastic over war speeches or coliseum victories. Allura was truly magnificent, but it wasn't a trait she would ever see in herself, he acknowledged.

Her blush bloomed with her sudden awe at the positive reception she received from everyone. All Allura could do was wave, further inciting the noise. As it quieted, she nodded to everyone once.

"I hope to get to meet all of you more on an individual level in the time that is to come. Thank you for this hospitable welcome," she ended with a deft curtsy. Her mannerisms were stagnantly opposite what any Drule queen would have done, but no other woman could arouse such admiration from her subjects as she did. She turned to look at him, her eyes wide with surprise and her face flush with relief. He extended his arm to her and helped her down off the podium.

"Once we have made our exit, feel free to continue the sport," he instructed the contenders, careful to make sure Allura was not a haphazard witness to the carnage his race enjoyed watching. Once the door clicked closed behind them, he heard the cheering ignite as the match picked up. Allura stood still, demurely holding her hands before her chest.

"Well?" He looked to her and she just smiled at him, genuinely.

"That was entirely unexpected," she admitted. Her bliss faded a degree as another memory struck her. "What did you mean by 'not had a queen in generations'?"

He stilled, contemplating her deeply for a moment. His serpentine eyes glanced around the room to make sure they were alone.

"We do not make a habit of sharing our power. It is not required by our laws. A son inherits the throne and becomes king."

"Then how do you produce heirs?" Allura frowned in confusion. When Lotor only quirked an eyebrow at her in response, she gasped, her skin turning bright red. As her innocence calmed, she seemed thoughtful again. "Lotor… do you have any sisters?"

His dark look startled the woman.

"None. …That I know of," he added.

"What happens then… if a king does take a queen and… their child is… female?" Allura's breath hitched in her chest as his golden eyes heated on her.

"Are you asking to bear me an heir, Allura?" He laughed as her temper snapped. The indignant sputtering the woman uttered in an effort to backpedal off the question left the king in deep amusement. "In all seriousness," he said, catching his breath and soothing her rage. "It would be unprecedented. It is one of the reasons kings tend not to take queens. It complicates the production of heirs. Those that have done so, have been historically blessed with sons," he finished. Allura scowled at him.

"Having a daughter isn't a curse," she muttered. She rolled her eyes at his chuckle.

"Yes, it is, but not in the dark way you're thinking. Sons are predictable. Daughters… daughters could drive a stake through their father's heart with their ambitions and willfulness," he said with surprising insight. Allura flushed. Alfor had always supported her decisions, but she knew he had always been worried or concerned for her. She wondered briefly if he wouldn't have been so afraid if she had been male. Allura shook her head once to clear her mind.

"Well, regardless. Thank you for showing me that. I'm going to depart to the study to finish the letters I was working on. I'd like to get them sent today as the travel times for some of them will be long."

He gave her a nod, watching her for a moment as she stepped back.

"I'll see you later."

Allura shivered at his parting words. It was neither a question, nor a casual parting.

It was a promise.

* * *

 **Yay! Yet more chapters today! This was a tricky chapter for me, because I want him to be the arrogant Lotor we all know and love, but yet he's trying. Finding that balance has been tricky for me. As always, I love your input! Thanks for reading this far!**


	10. Prospect

**Chapter 10 - Prospect**

* * *

Lotor strolled through the darkened corridor with military precision. He had stopped by both his bedchamber and the guest suite his elusive wife had been occupying and had been unable to find her. She was neither in the library, nor in any of the dining halls.

 _Dammit_. His frustration knew no limit when it came to the strong-willed woman. One moment he was certain he was getting past her defenses, the next he couldn't even find his queen. He had stormed every part of the castle he could think to look for her. After checking the hangar bay and ensuring her personal craft was still on his planet, he had begun combing the castle with more detail. Libraries, dining halls and conservatories had all yielded the same, unsatisfying lack of Allura. Each empty room heightened his irritation incrementally.

"I swear on all that is evil, Allura," he grumbled as the empty hallway echoed his bootfalls. "There is literally no other place I can think that you would…" he trailed off as his gait slowed to a standstill.

"Perhaps there is one," he amended, turning to look back at the doorway that caught his eye.

It was a relatively nondescript double door, but it was slightly ajar. He clasped both handles between his palms and pulled them open suddenly, stepping out onto the balcony he had first brought her onto in an attempt to coax her to eat.

Sure as the dawn, the brilliant woman leaned against the railing of the terrace, staring up with open wonderment at the sky. Her palms rested against the cool protective metal as the wind rustled both her hair and the layers of her gown. She looked utterly magnificent with the iconic Drule drape bathing her shoulders in midnight.

At the sound of his exhale, she turned slowly to look at him. One hand lifted to gingerly tuck her hair behind her ear before clasping in front of her chest demurely. The hint of a smile on her lips enlightened him that she had not been intentionally avoiding his company.

"How long have you been out here?" He walked carefully toward her.

"I lost track of time," she said after a moment, looking back to the marvelous sky. "The colors are always changing."

"They do that." He came to stand beside her as her attention returned to the strange clouds overhead.

"I finished my letters," she offered in the silence. He simply crossed his arms over his chest and studied her profile. She kept her eyes on the heavens, unable to meet his gaze. While her body presented calmness in his presence, his keen eyes noted the tension thrumming through her muscles.

"Good," he replied, unsure how else to respond. He raised his eyes to the sky and searched for the beauty she saw in it. The clouds overhead were the same ones he had grown up under; the atmosphere was violent and spoke of conquest with its rolling thunder and constant lightning strikes. It was toxic, near-impossible to navigate into or out of without specialized equipment and on the rare occasion that it brought rain, the water was acidic and lethal.

 _And yet she finds it enchanting,_ he thought, glancing back down to her as she continued to stare up, transfixed.

"Will you," he trailed off as her eyes slipped from the sky to meet his. He coughed suddenly, taking a moment to gather his thoughts. "Join me tonight." As he finished his question with a command, he instantly knew his mistake. Her eyes veiled themselves with the same ferocity his planet heralded. She wrinkled her nose slightly and with a faint snort, simply turned away from him to wander to the other side of the balcony.

"Allura!"

Her shoulders stayed stiff and her back remained a rigid shield between her heart and his body. She gave no indication she heard him call her name. Lotor stepped toward her and froze. He exhaled tensely through clenched teeth as he reigned in his temper. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he fought back every instinct to storm the distance and carry her back to his bed.

"Give me another chance." He had wanted to ask it as a question, he recognized it would resonate better with her, but making requests was simply not a skill he had ever acquired. He made demands and gave orders. Lotor had never needed to tailor his words to earn the desired outcome – it was simply handed to him. He did take a measure of pride in the fact that his words were quieter and calmer after several minutes had passed. Once he was confident he had control over his impulsive desires, he hazarded a glance in her direction.

Allura was watching him with both cool aloofness and curiosity over her shoulder. Her back remained predominantly to him, but she did grace him with her attention as she genuinely contemplated his question.

"I don't know," she replied honestly. "I don't… …maybe," she hedged. Her torso swiveled to face him as he slowly approached her. She crossed her arms over her chest protectively, regarding him with a familiar skittish nervousness.

"Do you understand how difficult this is for me," he murmured darkly as he touched her shoulders. She flinched slightly, but did not step back or pull away. "To have you so very, very close to me but so distant… and to control," he exhaled sharply as he lost his train of thought when her cheeks blushed. She averted her eyes from him but allowed him to continue to hold her, even as his fingers flexed around her shoulders and grew marginally tighter.

"It's not easy for me, either, you know," she finally admitted. Lotor blinked at her, his ramping lust evaporating.

"What?"

Allura exhaled sharply through her nose and shifted her weight uncomfortably, still staring off to the side and away from him.

"What do you mean," he encouraged, leaning in closer. She tensed, but allowed him the space.

"I…" she paused, flushing at a thought passing through her mind. "This is completely foreign to me, Lotor. I don't know… anything. And you… know so much," she said weakly.

"About what? You'll learn about our people and the history-"

"Not that," she murmured, silencing him. "I mean, you're correct, but I wasn't referring to that."

"What then?" As his voice grew softer, he leaned in closer. Allura released another nervous exhale.

" _This._ " She pointed between the two of them.

When he remained silent with confusion, her patience snapped.

"Bless the stars," she buried her face in her palms briefly in frustration. "You had a _harem_ , Lotor. How do you think that makes me feel?!"

"I don't have one any longer," he said simply.

"That's not the point! I…" She shrugged off his hands and backed away, placing her palms to her temples. After calming her emotions, she just shook her head once and looked at him, realization settling in.

"Just like with the incense. You can't understand me… not with that, or with this. It's simply not possible for you to understand me."

"I do understand you!"

Allura frowned at his outburst. Lotor's temper spiked at the sad look she bestowed onto him.

"It's alright, I suppose there are things I won't ever understand about you," she continued. She leaned back against the railing as he moved toward her slowly. A strange chord struck in his chest as he came to stand in front of her.

Before him was the pride and joy of Arus itself. Her brilliant blonde hair fanned around her in the Drule breeze, her gown rustled quietly and her hands braced behind her against the railing. The sky overhead caught her attention once more as she raised her eyes.

 _Mine._

The word echoed in his mind once more with a predatory lilt. He had succeeded in obtaining the one acquisition he desired more than anything else in the universe. She stood calmly beside him as she watched his sky. In his castle. At his side. She did not flee. She did not strike him. She had _married_ him. And yet, Lotor found himself in the surreal position where it did not feel like enough. He wanted more.

"Dammit," he muttered, causing her to startle.

"What… what's wrong?" She glanced back to him, her concern rising as he closed in around her. His gloved hands captured her bare ones behind her as his chest leaned in, pinning her against the railing. He watched as her eyes widened in alarm and her breathing hitched in tempo.

"There. That, right there. That's what's wrong," he said. He frowned when her eyes only grew wider with confusion. She glanced in both directions and then looked back to him.

"I… I don't see anything," she whispered worriedly. He glared down at her.

"Stop that," he commanded.

"I don't understand!" Her words were breathless on her lips as panicked tears sprang up. She began squirming against him in an attempt to wiggle free and step away from the frightening man. "You're scaring me!"

"Then stop being scared!"

She froze as his voice thundered across the terrace.

"Is… is that what you meant earlier?"

"Yes!" His hands tightened on hers and she winced slightly. In a single motion he pulled her against his chest, releasing her hands so that his could wrap around her slender, trembling frame and hold her. She pushed back and struggled against his chest. In a swift movement, Lotor pulled her away from the railing, drawing them both back to the center of the balcony, still cradling the panicking woman against him. As he began speaking, she grew still and listened.

"You look at me with fear. With sadness. That needs to stop."

Allura's head snapped up to look at him with fire burning in her eyes.

"Do you think you can just order someone to feel a certain way, and then that's… that's just how it is? Are you _sane_?" With a surge of strength, she shoved off of him and backed away. Lotor mentally breathed a sigh of relief that he had pulled them back from the balcony, recognizing that in her fear she could have easily lost her balance against the railing.

"Why is it that you look at Keith with warmth and affection but not me?"

"Because he's _kind_ Lotor, he's gentle!"

"I've given you everything you could ever want! How much kinder could I be!?"

Allura could only shake her head in open disbelief at his warped perception on reality.

"I am not here because I love you. I am here because I love _my people_. This is an arrangement that seemingly gives you everything you ever wanted, and benefits my people strategically. What did you think you were getting from it?"

Lotor stayed quiet.

"I look at you with fear because I'm afraid of you. You _terrify_ me! I look at you with sadness because you make me sad… What more of an explanation do you need? I look at Keith with warmth and happiness because he makes me happy. Don't you understand how emotions work? I don't choose which ones go where. Everyone else chooses that for me, I am merely responsible for how I react. I am scared right now.-"

"Allura," he began speaking but she continued.

"I am in a foreign place and very, very alone. And I am choosing to be brave and see it through. I am choosing to hide my fear as best I can, and to push through it. I cannot choose to not be afraid, Lotor, I can only choose how I deal with it," she finished, watching him with an unreadable expression on her face. Allura was stoic. Her features were soft as if she genuinely were trying to reach out and understand, but her eyes were guarded and wary.

"I frighten you?"

"I believe you even once told me you did that on purpose. I mentioned what a monster Zarkon was, and you boasted how you were ten times the monster he was capable of being."

His jaw twitched at her impeccable memory.

"Allura," he began. She stayed quiet, waiting for him to continue. He did not. After several quiet minutes passed, the weary queen exhaled. A moment passed before she inhaled deeply, her nerves steel again. Her eyes rose to meet his and he felt himself stunned by the frigid shields she bore.

"Since my emotions seem to upset you, I will take all due care to hide them in your presence, Your Majesty."

The coldness he found himself facing off against was similar to the one she had presented to him when she first accepted his proposal. Like before, it once more sent him reeling.

"Allura," he spoke her name again as her arms crossed over her chest. All traces of sadness and fear were gone from her expression, but he doubted they had left her mind.

"Will that be all? I'm afraid I am ready to retire tonight."

"Come with me. Come back to our bedroom," he instructed. He grasped her wrist before he realized his mistake. Her free palm collided with the side of his face as she wretched herself free.

"By our arrangement, you took both a queen and a wife. You did not take a bed warmer or an entertainer," she whispered at him, her temper flaring. "I'm _not_ one of your girls." Without waiting for his reaction, she turned and stormed off the terrace.

Lotor stared after her, his palm rubbing his cheek absentmindedly. The slap hadn't hurt, but the intention behind it left him stunned. As his surprise melted away, he cursed.

* * *

Haggar glanced up as the doors to her lair slammed open without warning. Only one man was brazen enough to do so. She tilted her head as the young king stormed in, fury on his face. The doors swung closed behind him and Haggar set aside the phylactery she had been working with. A wave of her magic-worn hand and the mist in her workspace dissipated.

"Yes, Sire?" She fixed her golden eyes on Lotor as he slammed his fist down on a nearby table. Corked vials of various liquids were sent rolling, but nothing broke. Haggar calmly collected the lost specimens and set them back into the rack on the table. She watched with muted curiosity as the man paced around her laboratory before slumping onto a stool near a table, resting his head in his hands.

The witch waited. When he simply sat there and said nothing, she broke the silence.

"Did you need a robeast? Are we going to invade Arus?"

"Gods no," he growled out. "She'd hate me even more than she does already."

"Ah," she said thoughtfully. "Are you dissatisfied with your arrangement with your new bride?"

"No. …Yes?" He rumbled angrily at his own confusion. His fury heightened with Haggar only cackled softly. "Just. Can you give me a love potion or something? Make this work. Make her desire me!"

"There is something I could make that would produce those effects," she admitted.

"Do it," he commanded.

"Are you sure that's wise?"

"I don't care. She's… she's angry with me. She fears me. She's cold, Haggar. I want her love."

"And you think a potion will do that? A simple spell?"

"Well, yes. You just said you have one that could do that," he said grumpily.

Haggar shrugged and went to her crucible. Lotor silently watched Haggar craft, his own exhaustion creeping in. After several minutes of mixing fluids in a cauldron, the witch dipped a small vial into the liquid. As she removed the glass, a brilliant, fuschia-colored liquid filled the container, glowing with its own light. She corked it and after wiping it down, carried it over to the king. Her hand held the vial out to him. His fingers closed around it but she did not release it right away.

"It won't be real. And it will fade with time as the liquid leaves her system, you know," she warned him.

"It's enough, and you can make more." He tugged at the vial, but she held firm.

"You just intend to keep a constant stream of drugs in her body? In small doses the potion isn't harmful. It's never been used in larger quantities before. I don't know what it will do to her, Sire," she said honestly, feeling slight alarm at the king's impetuous attitude.

Lotor frowned, but he didn't release his hold on the magic in his palm.

"But she'll love me, she could love me when it wears off," he said.

"Like she did with the incense," she asked sarcastically. "She _loved_ that."

Lotor frowned, looking back to the glowing pink liquid.

"What the hell am I doing," he growled out.

"What you've always done," she said simply in response. "You're trying to take everything you've ever wanted, and you've finally found something you can't just… take."

"I could give her this and take her to my bed," he said.

"Yes, you could. How do you think she'll respond the next morning?"

"Perhaps a long duration of it isn't ideal, I don't want her harmed. But every once in a while… That could work, right Haggar?"

"Again, it's intended as a one-time use potion. I can't predict the long-term consequences, even using it two or three nights a week."

"Then what the hell do I do? She won't share a bed with me anymore!" He tugged on the vial.

"And why is that?"

"She doesn't trust me!" His voice rose as his anger mounted.

"Did it take a magic potion to get her the first time?"

"No," he grumbled out irritably. "But she was upset by the aphrodisiac."

"And your thought is to give her a potion to override her base instincts and corrupt her perception of reality," Haggar commented flatly.

"She won't come to bed with me otherwise!"

"Well, if that's all you really care about," she murmured mystically, releasing the vial into his hand. He took the magic into his palm and studied it closely. After a second's hesitation, he stood up and moved out of Haggar's lab swiftly.

"Idiot," she muttered as the doors swung closed behind him.

* * *

"Allura!" Lotor stared across his bedroom in surprise. He had barely opened the doors to his chambers before he saw the last person he expected in his room. She looked up from where she sat curled on the side of the bed, a book in her lap. He stared at her from the doorway, dumbstruck, before quickly shoving the fluorescent pink vial into his coat.

"I… I thought perhaps I wasn't being… open enough," she hedged after a moment, glancing down to her book. "I realized that I have been making it a point to spend as little time around you as possible and… it's not very fair for me to say that I don't know you when I do that. And… I'm sorry I got so angry earlier." She glanced back to him to check his reaction.

"I'm not here for… for intimacy, Lotor," she said suddenly, recognizing the spark that flourished in his eyes. "And if that is your goal then I'll leave right now." Her eyes iced over and she tensed. Allura recognized the need to be as blunt as possible with the feverish king, but his wrath alarmed her. She waited for his response, braced for his fury with bated breath.

None came.

"Very well," he said after a moment. With a gasp, Allura's strained expression melted, and she felt genuinely surprised. "I am going to shower." He said nothing else and walked past her and into the adjoining bath. The door clicked closed behind him and Allura surprised herself by smiling slightly.

 _He wasn't angry,_ she thought. As she exhaled, the nervousness and fear she had been containing vanished. Allura wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, but she had worried that showing up in his bedroom and denying him physical intimacy might have been pushing too hard.

 _For better or for worse, as long as he is truthful in his promises about Arus, I'm in this for the long run. It would certainly be easier on me to know him more, at the very least._

Her eyes glanced back down to the chronology of the Drule Empire in her lap. The massive, red leather-bound tome rested heavily against the long, white silk nightgown she was draped in. She glanced back down to the words before her and turned a page deftly. Despite all her years preparing to be a queen, she had spend an unsurprisingly little amount of time preparing to rule the Drule Empire. She had long released her hair from any braids or bands she had it pulled back with and it fell long over her shoulders. Her drape and crown rested folded on the dresser of their bedroom.

 _Ours._

Her eyes had flickered from the book to regard the piece of furniture.

The door to the bathroom opened and Lotor stepped out, wrapped in a robe. She watched him carefully as he walked to the dresser and procured a pair of black satin pants. He did not look to her, but she watched as he hesitated as if contemplating something. Without a word, he returned to the bath to change.

 _Is he… respecting me?_ She blinked, struck. She recalled the last time they had shared the room when he had openly disrobed in front of her. Her eyes had been averted, but his actions had been unquestionable. _His domain._ And yet… She glanced up to him as he emerged a second time.

Allura swallowed as her pulse quickened – and not out of fear. His snowy hair was slick down his back, heavy with water from the shower. Droplets graced his chiseled face and he stood before her, dressed only in the black pants. They were snug enough to his muscular hips and thighs that she was easily left with the memory of their courtship. He said nothing as he reached for a dry towel and padded quietly into the room on bare feet, toweling off his hair as he did so.

 _It's not difficult to see why so many women desire him,_ she acknowledge internally. _It doesn't make him any less dangerous._

She forced her eyes back to the book in her lap as he circled around the bed and settled into his side of it. She could feel his eyes on her as she stared at the pages. The ink blurred and she divined no understanding from the text, but she was afraid to meet his gaze.

With a surprising softness, his index finger curled under her chin. Startled, Allura looked to him.

"Goodnight," he said after a moment of silence. He released her before settling under the sheet on his back. Allura watched him from her sitting position. Lotor appeared untroubled by the ambient lighting in the room as his eyelids draped closed and his hands folded across his torso.

She watched him a moment longer.

Even his facial features were firm at rest.

"You're so angry," she whispered softly, more to herself than anyone else. She reached out and brushed a lock of his damp hair from in front of his face. Allura pulled her hand back to her lap and just shook her head once, appreciating the moment he was granting her. She doubted he had fallen asleep in so little time, but he allowed her the liberty to pretend he had.

She looked back to the book in her lap, but her mind was nowhere near her studies. She closed the tome and set it aside before rising from the bed to darken the lights.

She found herself in a surreal situation as she lifted up the sheets and willingly slid into the same bed that Lotor slumbered in. As she curled on her side and watched her new husband for a moment longer, he made no movement toward her. With a warm smile, she rolled onto her other side and left her back to him, feeling comfortably safe.

* * *

 **Another chapter! This one felt a little slow and devoid of action, but I think it has needed dialog. Thanks for reading, and as always, please don't hesitate to let me know what you liked, didn't like, etc!**


	11. Preface

**Chapter 11 - Preface**

* * *

 _Gently._

Lotor's fingers curled into a fist and he pulled his hand back carefully as he reminded himself of her fragility. With a more mindful touch, he hesitantly reached back out toward the sleeping goddess in front of him. He lay propped up on one arm, his eyes hungrily devouring the golden-haired queen as she lay curled on her side.

One of her hands was tucked against her lips, the other curled under her face. White silk spiraled decadently out from her slender frame from when she had turned onto her opposite side over the course of the night.

With the faintest of touches, he brushed a feather-fine strand of hair from in front of her face. Reveling in her warmth, his thumb traced the contour of her cheek, coming to rest near her jaw. With a contrastingly light touch to what he was used to, he brushed his digit across her bottom lip. She stirred only faintly, offering a warm shift of her body as she murmured against him.

He withdrew his hand and reclined, watching contentedly as the woman slept. In many ways, she was the spitting image of what every Drule aspired to be; fierce, loyal, and brave; it was just not an aspect she saw in herself. In other ways, she was the astonishing opposite; gentle and kind, fearful and wary - and staggeringly benevolent. How the two halves came together into one, brilliant entity utterly fascinated him.

Lotor traced the back of his fingers lightly down her bare shoulder to her elbow where her arm folded back under her. The dark, satin sheets pooled around her waist and she had kicked off the throw blanket at some point in the night.

Allura sighed softly in her sleep.

 _What is it that you dream about, my dear?_

He frowned as a smile touched her lips and her eyelashes fluttered subtly. She uttered a faint noise, a sound he could only identify as a cross between a whimper and a moan. Jealousy bubbled in his veins like a violent volcano as he leaned back to watch her with more intensity.

 _Who_ _, exactly, is it you dream about?_ He amended his question in his mind. It certainly wasn't him, not with the soft blush that touched her cheeks. His lips pressed together tightly as he contemplated his options, trying not to settle on her charming commander.

Abruptly, he sat up, unable to continue watching the woman revel in a fantasy. His eyes glanced across the room to where his coat hung. Still tucked inside an interior pocket was the fluorescent vial. Lotor swung his legs off the bed and the shock of the cold floor under his bare feet temporarily stalled his intention. He exhaled once, calming his annoyance.

 _You're so angry._ Her voice from the night before echoed in his memory. The Drule sighed in frustration, burying his face in his palms as he propped his elbows on his knees. Just as he began to relax, the woman resting behind him made another soft, delighted noise in her sleep and he couldn't stop the jealousy that exploded back through his system.

He couldn't help his biology – Drules were naturally territorial and aggressive. She was _his._ He had made her his in every possible way, save one.

Serpentine eyes flashed back to the secret weapon hidden in his pocket across the room.

 _I will have you_ _all_ _,_ he thought darkly, dropping his hands back to the mattress. Just as he started to push up from the bed to cross the room, Allura uttered the only word that could freeze his fury cold.

"…Lotor."

Barely afraid to breathe, he slowly turned to look back at his queen. As far as he could tell, she continued to sleep and to dream. The soft pink touches to her cheeks lingered, and her lips remained curled in a small smile.

He stared at her, his eyes wider than he ever thought possible. Shock was not an emotion he was used to feeling, but he regarded her with open surprise and a hint of wonderment.

 _What is this strange feeling?_ He swallowed, unable to place the emotion coursing through him. His heart moved at a pace faster than normal and a strange heat thrummed through his chest. He was neither afraid nor angry; and the sensation was… warm?

Allura's eyes blinked open suddenly and she stared up at him in a daze. A moment of silence settled between them before she spoke.

"Are… are you alright?" She whispered.

"Why do you ask?" He continued to stay very still, his torso turned toward her while his legs hung off the edge of the bed.

"I don't think I've ever seen you look so-" she paused as she yawned suddenly. "-hopeful," she finished. She closed her eyes and stretched her arms and back, missing the stunned expression on his face.

 _Hope_. That was what it was called.

"It's rude to watch girls when they sleep, you know," she murmured as she rolled onto her back lazily, curling her toes as her legs stretched. "You might steal their dreams."

"And what is it that you dream about?" He watched her with a fiery intensity as her body relaxed from the stretch.

"Depends," she said simply, eyeing the ceiling happily. "Sometimes I dream nightmares of Zarkon, sometimes wonderful memories of my people. The Summer Festival is one of my favorites, and it's coming very, very soon," she whispered conspiratorially before looking over to him with winsome smile. After a second of seriousness passed, her expression hardened. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason," he said quickly.

"Did I say anything in my sleep?" Her suddenly impassive face gave nothing away, but she eyed him with wariness at his swift answer.

"No," he lied. He paused, curious. "What's the Summer Festival?" He watched in awe as her eyes lit up like a darkened sky at dawn.

"It's amazing, it's a holiday on Arus," she began, excitedly. "It celebrates life, the day, the sun, fire, everything! It lasts from sunset to sunrise. There are fire dancers, flame-eaters, artists, chefs, entertainers, performers, lanterns, competitions... anything you could ever imagine! It's spectacular Lotor, and everyone is so... so _happy_ when it happens. Families and children and war heroes alike all come out to enjoy it." She sighed happily, as if reminiscing. She paused, her earth-shattering eyes glancing his way coyly.

"You might like it, if you wanted to come see it," she hedged waifishly.

"I doubt I'd be welcomed," he muttered.

"Oh, I think you would!" Allura rolled onto her side and sat up abruptly. "My people aren't nearly as..." She froze suddenly, her words dying on her lips as something struck her. Lotor tossed her a lazy look.

"I know exactly what you were going to say. Go ahead and finish, it... doesn't trouble me like it probably should. I rather believe that to be your doing, by the way," he smirked at her.

"I..." She blushed brightly. "They aren't nearly as fearful of you as they are of Zarkon," she finished softly, worried he would rise to the challenge.

"Will you be there?"

"Of course, pending some diplomatic disaster elsewhere that would require an immediate intervention. It's one of my favorite holidays!" She clapped in front of herself softly. "I look forward to it every year."

"Then it shall be my pleasure to attend, as well," he said, watching the blinding smile on her face with decadent fascination.

"It will be lovely! You'll see Arus while it's celebrating, not in pain. It... it's so beautiful, Lotor. I..." She frowned as she paused. "I don't know if you'll find it as wonderful, since we have different visions of beauty, but I am delighted to be able to share a piece of mine with you."

He swung his legs back onto the bed and crossed them, bracing his elbows on his knees as he watched her sit lazily next to him.

"Lotor?" He paused before answering her, savoring the sound of his name on her lips.

"Yes, my dear?"

"What do you dream about when you sleep?" She leaned back on the bed, moving her eyes to the ceiling above them, but her attention remained fixed on the powerful, dominant body sitting beside hers.

"Are you sure you want to know that?" He tilted his head to the side as he watched her closely.

"I think, yes, I would like to know," she responded after a moment of thoughtful consideration. "Even if it's… dark or... ..or violent," her whisper trailed off as he leaned over her.

"I could just show you, if you wanted," he murmured quietly, drawing his palm up her side, over the curve in her waist and the swell of her breast unabashedly.

"Lotor!" She flushed brightly, sitting up abruptly once more. "Is _that_ what you dream about?" She looked positively scandalized. His eyes trailed over her body, drinking in every curve and turn he could find. She flushed crimson at his open courtship before she crossed her arms across her chest self consciously. "Anyway," she attempted to redirect his intention. His eyes snapped up to hers and he could only sigh.

"You will still deny me," he said quietly. It wasn't a question or an accusation, simply a statement. She blushed brightly and looked away from him.

"I…"

"Allura," he began. He reached toward her but froze. With his arm half-outstretched and the queen looking worriedly over at him, he realized his mistake. The image painted between them was far too symbolic; Allura flinching away with wariness from his open, grasping reach. _Give. Don't just take._

His fingers curled back in and he withdrew his hand.

"If - and _when_ you're ready," he conceded, more to himself. "In the meantime, I require a shower." She blinked at the shocking display of subtle gentleness from the warlord next to her. He stood up carefully and began to make his way to the bath. Clearing her mind of her surprise, she called after him.

"Didn't you take one before bed?"

"It wasn't cold enough," he muttered, closing the door behind him. Allura stared at the barrier between them, confused by his words.

* * *

Allura found herself in the surreal situation of sitting next to Lotor for one of his meetings. She was draped in her usual pink and white gown, the midnight sash over her shoulders and her new crown upon her head. Similarly, Lotor sat stoically next to her, his own royal accessories gracing his frame. He had retained most of his usual style – including the infamous skull belt – since the coronation and had only incorporated the cape his father had once worn.

Her hands twisted nervously in her lap. She recognized the importance of being involved in politics – especially if he intended her to be a partner in the process with him – but being stared down by three other Drule lords was almost too intimidating for her. They argued between themselves and occasionally threw a complaint Lotor's way. He simply stayed quiet, listening. Allura glanced up to him demurely and found herself surprised by the calmness that blanketed the hot-tempered face.

Never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined Lotor of all people, hearing and tolerating complaints and criticism without an angry or even violent reaction. He simply sat and let the three men air their grievances.

The subject of contention was the expansion of the Empire. Allura found that the release of the slaves had been a global decree – not just on Planet Doom. She wondered briefly if the protesting lords knew that she was the one responsible for it. _If they know, they'll kill me._ A fist slamming down on the table jarred Allura from her worrisome thoughts and she glanced up to the angry men.

"Careful," Lotor said calmly, but not without authority.

"Sire, the situation is critical. Conquering and destroying… it's… it's our way of life! It's what makes us who we are. If we cannot take spoils and riches from other planets, how will we feed our children? How will other races and planets know to fear us? It is our birthright and our heritage to continue this legacy!"

"We simply cannot continue to support having more slaves than we know what to do with," he said quietly. One of the other lords growled his frustration and the first continued his argument.

"Then we take from more planets!"

"And then what? Every planet we desecrate then produces no more riches for us. Eventually, we have too many mouths to feed. We are in a splendid point in our expansion; our own people are flourishing and growing in population. We must focus on them. We can no longer afford to feed, care for or house slaves."

"Then we don't, we just use them until they die!" The angry lord glanced across the table when Allura gasped in shock. "You have a problem with that?"

"I'll remind you once – and only once, you're speaking to your queen with that tone of voice. Do it again, and I'll cut your tongue out myself," Lotor growled dangerously.

The lord grumbled something vaguely resembling a murmur of assent, but it seemed to temporarily satisfy him.

"Okay," the third man spoke up for the first time. "So how can we have our slaves back?"

"You can't," Lotor said simply. One of the men snorted in irritation.

"But sire," he pleaded, seemingly calmer than the other two with him. "There must be something we can do. Our culture will die if we stop conquering planets altogether. Most of our income and food come from expeditions like that."

Allura froze when Lotor turned to look at her, pinning her with his gaze.

"Any ideas, my dear?"

"I… I… what? You… want my opinion on this?" Her voice was barely above a whisper, completely surprised by his question. She shrank back into her chair. She wondered briefly if he was courting an attempt to scare her from the politics of his Empire, or to prove she was unable to handle it. It would be an underhanded manipulation technique to offer her power only to demonstrate she was unworthy to wield it. The fault would fall to her; not to him.

Three other sets of eyes focused on her, one with open curiosity and the others with judgment.

"Yes," he said simply.

She exhaled once to calm her fluttering heart and squared herself to the table before her. After placing her folded hands on the table, she contemplated the situation earnestly for a moment and drew on her reserves for the fortitude to withstand the judgment.

"She's from Arus, she's not going to support-"

"I think," she began, catching the attention of every man in the room, but her eyes stayed fixed on her folded hands, her fingers toying with each other. "I think that the issue is the survivability of the Empire. If having and taking slaves is causing a drain on both finances and physical resources, then it simply cannot continue."

"See? I told-"

"However," she continued, undeterred. "I see no reason the culture should suffer for that one piece. Only part of the conquering is bringing back living spoils, right?" She glanced up to look around at the surprised faces. "So don't. Bring back everything else – the wealth, the food. You could even use some of the wealth to pay a wage to attendants, if you wanted. By leaving the people unharmed on their planets, they can then rebuild… and recreate the infrastructure. It won't leave a dead planet in your wake – you'll get everything but the living labor, and retain your fierce image. That's… that's what I think, anyway," she added the last line weakly when silence met her suggestion. She chewed on her lip self-consciously, glancing around at the impassive faces watching her.

"Well?" Without another comment, Lotor glanced up to the three men.

"That's actually… …quite brilliant," one murmured.

"We could then invade the planet a second, third, … many more times as they regenerate resources. It won't become just a dead rock. I really only need a few service girls anyway." Allura shivered at the thought.

"That… that could easily work. My Lord?" The rulers of the planets looked toward the king of the empire for his word on the matter. He, instead, looked down to Allura.

"Does that resolution satisfy you?" She blinked in surprise at his question before nodding once. All her doubt and concern about him trying to alienate her from politics vanished when he ultimately gave her the final word in the matter.

"I'm sad for the people who will lose the things they worked so hard for, but pleased they will not be harmed," she explained. She ignored the snort from across the table. "But it is also important to acknowledge cultural differences and to try and preserve that heritage," she added.

"Then it shall be so," he announced, glancing back to the planetary rulers across from him. "See that your home worlds learn of this." He rose from his chair and offered the crook of his arm to Allura. She gently rose by his side and demurely took the offered arm.

"Your Majesties," the lords presented a formal bow to both Allura and Lotor before exiting the conference room.

"Meetings are so tiresome," he murmured, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers. "I don't know how you put up with them."

"It's good to hear what other people have to say and are feeling," she explained. She reached over to pat his arm with her free hand. "Otherwise you would never know that your people are unhappy."

"That's never mattered to me before," he said quietly, leading the way out of the room. "But, I learned from my father. It didn't matter to him either, and it's put us on the edge of a knife. We can either fall into poverty, or rise into glory." He glanced over to her and smirked wickedly. "I intend for it to be the latter."

Allura stopped in her tracks. Lotor continued on another three steps before turning to look at her, confused. She stared down at the floor, her mind racing with his last comment.

"What is it," he asked. She just held her hand up as her mind rolled through the surplus of information in her memory. All the pieces were there, but they weren't yet in the right order.

"Allura." She shook her head as he spoke again. She pressed her digits to her temples.

"I'm thinking, just wait," she said. Her mind rushed through the conversation she had just had with the Drule lords before flashing back to sitting in the kitchen with Lotor several nights before. Pieces of both conversations surfaced and the puzzle began to reorient itself in her mind before clicking into place. She raised her eyes to stare at him and he found himself taking a step back under the icy look. Her hands fell to her sides with a worrisome finality.

"You would have freed the slaves either way. And yet you still let me use it as a leverage point in our negotiations. I _knew_ I was missing something that evening," she murmured, referencing that night, snapping her fingers once.

"Don't misunderstand - I had no intention of releasing my hold on Romelle or walking away from Arus with you still out there," he explained.

"That's not the point!" She glared at him. "I don't like being deceived! Is there anything else you haven't told me? You're making a habit of hiding things from me," she said angrily.

"No, I've been honest-"

"Incense," she said, counting off her fingers. "The fact that I didn't need to use the slaves as leverage because you were going to do that anyway. Everything comes in threes, what else are you hiding from me?" She stared at him intently as he shook his head once.

"Nothing," he said.

Allura trembled with emotion before exhaling to calm herself.

"And can I trust you on that?"

Lotor stared at her carefully before nodding once.

"Yes."

She scowled before walking toward him, dropping her mantle of battle. Her emotional shield shattered at her feet as she retook her place at his side.

"Just, be honest with me, please. Even if you think I won't like it, I'd… I'd rather hear it than not," she said quietly, resuming her pace beside him. "I want... ...I know it's new to you, but I like talking," she admitted, her spirits lightening slightly. "I would prefer to have a difficult discussion about something we may not - or ever - agree on, and at least come to terms with the fact we don't agree... than just... have something swept under the rug or hidden in the closet because it might cause an issue. I prefer to know. And... I am always open to hearing another side of things. Please don't forget that," she murmured, her palm touching his bicep gently as she walked beside him.

He stayed silent, his mind flashing to the vial he had taken from Haggar. He had removed it from his coat and it was buried at the bottom of the dresser, and never had he felt more like a bastard than he did just then. She was asking for honesty, begging him to share his side, and he still decided in that moment the best course of action would be to return it to the witch as soon as he could do so discreetly. As much as Allura wanted to know everything, for better or worse, he didn't fancy trying to explain his intention to chemically cloud her judgment.

"Will you still join me on Arus for the Summer Festival?" She turned hopeful eyes up at him in his silence. He blinked in surprise. "It starts tomorrow night," she added.

"Of course."

The smile that lit up her face was breathtaking. She nodded once, pleased, and redirected her eyes forward.

"The boys should be in better spirits by now, anyway," she added. Lotor stilled. He hadn't contemplated the ramifications of running into the Voltron Force on Arus again.

"What is it?"

"Your comrades," he said flatly.

"They'll be fine," she explained dismissively.

"How do you know they won't attack me?"

Allura looked up at him with a very coy smile on her lips.

"Because they understand the situation and respect my wishes. I trust them. I trust them with my life, and yours too," she said. "It will be nice to see everyone again," she added thoughtfully.

His eyes glanced forward once more, gliding beside her.

"It's beautiful," she said suddenly in their silence. He glanced down to her.

"The Festival?"

Allura nodded so feverishly she nearly jumped up and down.

"I..." she trailed off, a blush staining her cheeks. She glanced away from him as she gathered her words. "...It pleases me that you would like to join me," she admitted at last, not yet meeting his eyes.

"How soon do we need to be there?" He stared at her profile, fascinated by the contours of her flushed face.

"It would be ideal if we arrived either late tonight or early tomorrow morning. The festival lasts all night so, to fully enjoy it, we'll want to try and sleep as much of the day away tomorrow as possible. I'm not sure what is on your radar for meetings however," she added, looking toward him suddenly.

"My schedule is clear. We'll leave for Arus in a few hours."

He felt that strange warm sensation flood his chest and his heart accelerated as her face lit up with excitement and her hands clasped together in front of her.

 _What is this witchcraft,_ he thought darkly, unable to tame the festering desire to encourage more of her delighted reactions. He shook his head once and continued to lead her down the hall, lost in thought.

* * *

 **Another chapter! Thank you for reading, as always, I love to know what you think.**


	12. Pyre

**Chapter 12 - Pyre**

* * *

Allura watched as Lotor deftly leaped from the cockpit of his cruiser before pivoting on his toe to face her. He extended his palm down with a roguish grin and she placed her palm in his offered one. In a delicate movement, he helped her rise to her feet and step out of the back passenger seat of the tiny craft.

More than once, he had offered to take a larger, more comfortable ship, but Allura had always seemed content with the cruiser. Despite its smaller size, it was comfortable enough for the two of them, and he suspected she rather appreciated being away from the Doom guardsmen. Additionally, the view that the glass dome offered while traveling through space was undeniable. He wondered briefly just how often she was able to travel - the hunger to explore was staggeringly obvious every time they launched.

"Allura!"

Two sets of eyes glanced up as a cadre of space explorers charged into the loading dock, smiles on their faces. Other than a wary look cast briefly Lotor's way from the commander, her teammates were in cheerful spirits as she rushed forward to greet them.

"You came back for the Festival, didn't you?"

"I wouldn't dream of missing it, Pidge," she laughed softly.

"Wow-wee, look at that," Lance whistled, reaching out to touch the dark blue fabric wrapped around her, his fingers brushing the gold crest by her left shoulder. "That's what queens in the Drule Empire wear, right?"

She nodded once, missing the darkening look on Keith's face.

"And that crown!" Hunk chimed in, pointing at the headpiece. In her haste and fury to rush to Arus, Allura had not bothered with the ornamental pieces before. After feeling marginally more comfortable in her new role, she was making the attempt to embrace all that came with it.

"Let me go settle in boys, we can catch up in a bit," she said with a giggle. "If you want to meet in the parlor, we'll be there briefly." She tossed a look to Lotor over her shoulder before nodding with her head. "Come, I'll show you to our room."

" _Their_ room?" Allura ignored Keith's remark as she glided past the boys with her new husband tense at her side.

"I mean... they are... married," Lance offered almost uncomfortably.

"But you don't think they're actually... you know..." Hunk looked after the couple walking down the corridor toward Allura's bedroom. "Naw, she wouldn't... ...would she?"

"Is it really any of our business, anyway?" Keith looked down to Pidge who shrugged helplessly in response. "I mean… it's not."

The four space explorers blinked in shock when they saw Allura glance to Lotor at something he said before she burst into giggles without warning.

"No shit," Lance muttered, hiding the smirk on his face when he caught sight of Keith's scowl.

"At least she seems to be doing okay, that's what's most important," the commander conceded, though he couldn't be sure if he were convincing his teammates or himself more.

* * *

Allura tossed open the sliding closet door and smiled appreciatively at the familiar sight. With a gentle push, she tugged the gowns to the side to create space for him. He had brought fairly little with him; an extra pair of boots and some nondescript daywear, but she anticipated he would be in his notorious outfit most of the time.

He watched with muted amusement as she bounced excitedly around her room, stretching her muscles from the interplanetary trip. A moment passed and she stalled, turning to look over at him curiously. She shook her head once as his raised brow.

"Just... strange. Still surreal to see you standing there. I'm more used to you trying to break through that," she said, pointing to the large, glass window running the length of a wall of her room.

"Things change," he commented quietly. Her cheeks blushed and she nodded once. A tense silence settled over them before the sound of exciting chirping startled Allura.

"If it isn't my most loyal subjects," she exclaimed, spinning away from her husband at the call of the Space Mice. Her cadre of furry friends had lined up on the shelf near her bed and proceeded to dance ecstatically at the sight of her.

Cupping her hands and extending them out, the playful pets leaped into her palms and promptly settled in on her shoulders.

"Mice," Lotor coughed.

Allura giggled in response, flashing a heart-melting smile toward him.

"I'll introduce you – oh, Cheddar," she gasped as the mice quickly disappeared under her mantle of hair at the sight of the king. "It's okay, you can come out," she coaxed. Carefully, the larger of the mice peeked out and regarded the alarming man in the room.

She extended her forearm away from her torso and held it horizontally in front of her.

"Come now, don't be rude. Come say hello," she murmured quietly. More sets of noses peeked out from her hair before the braver of the mice cautiously wandered down her arm and stopped on her wrist to eye the Drule.

"Hm?" She turned her head to the side as one of the shyer ones squeaked in her ear. "Oh, no, Blue Cat is not here," she reassured the tiny animal. With mounting courage, Cheddar's comrades joined their leader in Allura's palms in front of Lotor.

"I, Allura, what do I say to mice?" He gave her a befuddled look, completely caught by surprise by the exchange.

"You could say hello," she chastised him gently.

"They're _rodents_ ," he said with exasperation. "Why do you even _have_ them?"

"They're my friends," she sniffed. "They're being very brave right now, you know." She withdrew her palms back to her chest and deposited the companions on her nightstand near her bed. "You all did very well, I'll make sure Pidge sneaks you some extra cheese tonight, okay?"

She laughed with delight and clapped as the mice cheered in excitement before bounding away. Allura sighed softly and turned to look back at her husband. His eyes were still fixed on where the creatures had been.

"You… have mice," he reiterated. "They're actual pets. Not just… pests that roam your castle."

She scowled at him.

"When you live alone in a castle, friends help you keep your sanity," she murmured quietly. His golden gaze snapped to her just as she averted her own. "They kept me company when I was little. I didn't exactly get to leave much; it wasn't safe outside for a young heiress." She brushed past him to move to the door, keeping her eyes lowered. Recovering from her moment of darkened memories, she looked back to him as the light returned to her eyes.

"Are you hungry? Would you like to go meet with the boys? You're welcome to wander any place you like, and I would understand if you weren't terribly keen on sitting down with-"

"I will join you," he cut in with a nod. He had no interest in being away from the shimmering woman.

* * *

The situation was utterly surreal.

 _Is this how it feels for her to be on Doom?_ Lotor frowned.

He found himself sitting stiffly beside Allura on a loveseat. She chatted cheerfully with more vibrancy than he had seen from her, gesturing with her hands while retelling a story. A small table separated the king and queen from the other Space Explorers. Lance sat lazily in a chair, his boots kicked up on the table, one ankle crossed over the other. As his polar opposite, Keith stood like a sentinel at the back of the room, arms crossed over his chest. The other two engaged the woman in her narrative, asking questions.

A light lunch had been prepared, consumed and cleared over the course of the last hour and the candid group continued to socialize in the lounge. Periodically, a castle maid would appear and refresh any of the drinks from bringing Lotor another glass of wine to topping off Allura's iced tea.

Lotor's arms draped casually over the back of the small sofa, his right hand just above Allura's shoulder. It was a careful line he walked; he knew demonstrating too much possessiveness over the woman would rile the commander, but he couldn't help the swell of avarice for the Arusian. She was _his._ It had taken him far too long and far too much effort to take that fact for granted. He was proud of it.

"No way!" Pidge's gasp startled the king from his trance. He watched as Allura giggled and nodded.

"He absolutely did! I swear it!"

"You're telling me the King of Dellin actually wrote you back... with a marriage counter-proposal? Can people even do that?" Hunk looked shocked.

Allura could only nod again amidst her giggles.

"So let me understand - you wrote to him to explain how Arus would still be trading with them as normal after the whole… thing," Lance trailed off, waving his hand in Lotor's direction for lack of a succinct word to describe the situation.

"And he writes back, I quote, 'I did not realize you were looking for a husband – is there still time to extend my candidacy?' I couldn't believe it," she finished, burying her face in her hands while giggling.

"Did you… respond?" Hunk leaned forward in his chair as Allura dropped her palms back to her lap and shrugged in response.

"What in the six heavens could I say to that?"

She exhaled, leaning back into her seat, seemingly untroubled as her shoulders touched Lotor's arm behind her.

"This is lovely. Things feel almost… normal. …I didn't realize how much I needed this trip," she murmured, smiling at her dear friends. "And soon it will be time to start the party! Are you all ready?"

"Will it be like last year?" Keith's unusually quiet voice caught her attention. She glanced up to where he leaned against the wall and nodded once.

"Yes," she affirmed. "And I intend to try and stay up all night this time," she added.

"You were asleep right after the opening ceremony concluded," Lance teased her. Allura blushed.

"I'll remind you we had been in combat the entirety of the day leading up to it," she snapped back primly, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'd say I did rather well."

"Hunk managed to stay up all night," Lance continued to tease her. Blue fire sparked behind her eyes.

"In my defense," Hunk began, eyeing Allura carefully. He paused as she pinned him with a glare. A moment of silence rolled by before she prodded him.

"Yes?"

Hunk hesitated before continuing. "…there _was_ a lot of really, really good food."

Allura's irritated demeanor shattered as she burst out laughing at the man. Once catching her breath, she wiped the tears that blossomed in the corner of her eyes.

"Yes, yes I suppose there was," she conceded with a happy sigh. "Well, that being said, I am going to go attempt to sleep for the rest of the day." As she rose to her feet, Lotor was beside her. "I'll see you all in a few hours." She waved to the boys before making her way back to her room, her husband close behind.

* * *

Once the doors had closed behind them, his hand found its way to her hip as she led them down the hallway. She cast him a wary look.

"I'm behaving," he replied coolly. Allura attempted to step away, but his hand remained firm on her side. Her eyes narrowed but she gave no further resistance.

Allura palmed open the door to her room and walked inside, stepping out of her heels as she did so. Lotor dropped regally onto one side of her bed before kicking off his boots and removing his skull belt and sword sheath. She watched him quietly for a moment before shaking her head once.

The queen set aside the sash and crown before walking over to where he lounged lazily.

"Roll over," she all but ordered him. Instead, he folded his hands behind his head and raised an eyebrow at her. She sighed in exasperation. "You're on my side."

"This is the side I sleep on," he said.

"Yes, in your bed. Not in mine, now scoot," she urged, coming to stand in front of him. He regarded her carefully for a moment before his lips split into a fanged smirk.

"Make me," he challenged her. Allura's cheeks flushed pink as he stubbornly continued to recline on her preferred half of the large bed.

"Lotor," she insisted with frustration. She leaned over in an attempt to physically push him and quickly realized her mistake.

His hands grasped at the sides of her waist and before Allura could process the shift in power, she found herself straddling his hips, her palms splayed across his chest.

"We can always share the same side," he implied suggestively, letting his hips buck slightly against her provocatively. The crimson shade her entire body colored hinted that she understood his insinuation.

"Let me up," she whispered. Both alarm and shock laced her breathless voice as she struggled to rise off the man and his fingers only tightened around her.

"Where's the fun in that?" His tone was still playfully casual but he kept a careful eye on her expression. When her expression shifted from alarm to fear, he quickly released her. Allura lept off of him, curling her limbs into her torso protectively as she landed.

"Brute," she accused, rolling over onto her side and turning her back to him. He continued to lie on his back, watching as her golden hair fanned behind her – between them. He laced his fingers together across his chest and turned his eyes to the ceiling thoughtfully.

While he was certain she would be quick to fall asleep, he realized how unlikely it would be for him to get much rest with the memory of her delightful squirming fresh in his mind. He couldn't blame her – he had known the risk he was taking when he pulled her down to him. The uncomfortable situation was entirely of his own design. Admittedly, he required far less rest than she did and found himself simply content to lie beside her while she slept.

 _How strange,_ he thought.

* * *

Allura couldn't help the warm sensation that flooded her chest and the smile that bloomed across her face. In the Arusian twilight, thousands of people had gathered around the castle. Some had taken front-row seats on blankets near the moat, while more still perched on the hills. The crowd was vast and seemingly endless. The gentle murmuring and chattering of her people quieted as she glided across the stone paving in front of her castle. Her feet did not take the bridge; instead they navigated their way down the embankment toward the moat. Allura paused at the edge of the water before looking across the landscape. Small boats filled the moat, couples and families alike eager for the ceremony to begin the Summer Festival. She wordlessly raised her eyes to the sky and watched as the fiery hues shifted to navy and violet. Across the heavens, the first of many stars appeared.

"It's time," she murmured.

The Voltron Force, Lotor and her guardians were sequestered in a small area near the castle wall beside the moat. As Allura turned to face them, Coran stepped forward. Sheltered in his arms was an unusual and ancient-looking relic. A small lantern, old, worn and well-used, held a flickering flame. It looked common with nothing particularly extraordinary about it. The most expensive aspect was that at one point, the lamp appeared to have been made of silver, but it was tarnished in a way that did not come from neglect, but from age. A custom-built dome curved around the metal piece, designed with ducts specifically to protect it from gusts of wind, while still allowing airflow to the small flame.

Allura reached forward and pulled the ornament to her chest, cradling it in both her arms. Lotor tossed Lance a curious look when the chipper pilot clapped in giddiness.

"You're in for a treat," he murmured to the Drule before fixing his gaze on Allura's back as she turned away from the group. The reverence with which she carried the lamp startled her new husband. Her pace was slow, her steps precise. She paused at the edge of the moat.

"What-" Lotor leaned forward as the woman took another step forward and miraculously seemed to stand on top of the water. Small ripples fanned out from her feet and the king's sharp eyes quickly saw what he had missed before: built just beneath the surface of the water was an entire walkway of a perfectly clear material. Glass or plastic, he couldn't be certain without touching it, but it gave the illusion that Allura walked on water.

The hem of her pink and white gown fanned out regally around her, floating on the surface. With each practiced step, with each darkening second, Allura carried the precious lantern to the center of the moat where a nondescript platform stood. As she moved across the glassy surface, a dim light beneath the water began to glow, as if illuminating the path she took. She came to a stop near the center of the body of water and looked out at everyone in boats, on the shore and in the distance. The theatrics of the radiant display were simple, but stunning.

Cast in the dying twilight and illuminated by lights obscured by rippling water, the fierce queen of a proud planet began to speak, all while clutching a strikingly nondescript and otherwise unimportant lamp to her chest with a reverence to rival a priest.

"My friends," she began earnestly. "Thank you all for coming tonight. This night marks one of our most cherished traditions and sacred holidays. We are reminded that even when the night is darkest, there will always come a dawn. We realize that shadows cannot exist without light and there will always burn a fire in our hearts."

Lotor glanced over his shoulder as the commander eased himself onto the ground, sitting cross-legged, as he watched Allura closely. Despite his proximity to his most lethal adversary, Keith couldn't help but smile warmly at Allura's brilliance. Her gentleness was infectious.

"Fire is often considered to be fleeting - easily extinguished. It can be a violent consumption of fuel, destruction, and then darkness again. However. Not all fires burn out," she explained. Her arms extended and she held the dingy lantern before her.

"This is the Everflame, one of Arus' most precious relics. Like last year, and the years before that, I will tell you its story. It is worthy of being remembered," she said, her voice carrying across the water without the aid of a microphone or any amplification. The reverence with which she said the word 'worthy' weighted the tale to be told. Despite hearing the story every year, the citizens waited with bated breath to hear it again. Allura set the lantern on a small pedestal on the central platform and folded her hands in front of it.

"The Everflame burns in the catacombs. When not being used during ceremonies, it is affixed to a near-endless supply of oil and serves as a reminder that even when those we love leave this realm, they are still tied to us. A spark of them still burns within us, and we are forever connected to everyone we've ever touched." She paused, catching her breath as a memory of her father rolled through her.

"Four centuries ago," she continued. "Arus found itself embroiled in conflict. Civil war beat across our land as our people struggled to find unity. We warred. We fought. We slayed. We _feared._ One day, our closest ally at the time, the planet Rylla, suffered a cataclysmic event. A massive asteroid breached their atmosphere and slammed into their surface. Smoke, dust and fire rained down from their skies, nearly extinguishing all life. Despite our own, internal conflict, we rallied around our closest friend and neighbor. Every Arusian had something to lose – each of us had a friend on that planet. We knew someone - we had a brother, a mother or a son who lived there. We all lost something when tragedy struck.

"For the first time after years of violence, we came together – not for ourselves, but for _them_. To help someone else. Many perished in Rylla's disaster, but many still were saved. We were there. We helped. We evacuated them and provided support, food, shelter until the survivors could sort out what they needed to do next. As you all know, they are a much smaller, but still-thriving race. They have moved to an orbital colony in the next quadrant over and have thrown themselves into early detection research - their goal has been to prevent that from ever happening to another planet. Through the centuries, they have evolved, as have we, but we have maintained a close camaraderie with them," she said quietly, reaching forward to touch the dome on the lantern.

"The ruler of Rylla was so grateful for Arus' help that a year later he presented the king of Arus with a gift of gratitude and an emblem of peace. He brought this lantern. The words he spoke to King Astraus were 'may peace forever shine from your skies.' We, as a people, as a planet, came together in one of the most decisive, destructive and critical times in our history to help our friends. We put aside our own grievances to answer to a higher calling. In an effort to salvage what we could from a dying friend, we trusted each other again. We worked together. After the fall of Rylla, We never went back. We stayed together, we stayed strong – we stayed unified. We began to work out our problems with words, not violence. And here we all are today." She stretched her arms out to her side, gesturing to the large crowd that had gathered on her shoreline.

"This lantern was a gift to an ancient king from an ancient race, but the message is timeless. It represents the very soul of Arus - the fire that burns there, the promise of compassion, of peace and loyalty. It has never been extinguished," she finished with a calm, sturdy certainty.

I will now use this ancient fire to continue to ignite the future for us," she said, peeling the dome off the top. As fresh air rushed the fire, it grew substantially in size, casting the monarch in a warm hue. With due reverence, she took a small, paper lantern and gently lit it from the Everflame. She held the base while the delicate parachute filled with hot air. As it began to lift from her palms, she released it, the tiny light floating higher in the sky.

"Take your marks!" Allura's voice echoed across the moat and archers appeared, standing on a nearby ledge of the castle lowered their bows at the rising balloon.

"Spread the Everflame!"

Arrows barbed not with steel, but wicks, were unleashed from taut bowstrings and crossed paths with the fiery lantern. After igniting, they continued on, striking other targets. Before long, carefully placed lamps, pyres and fireworks were kindled in a carefully choreographed display of light. The sky itself lit up bright as the dawn and showers of sparks rained down.

"King Lotor, would you join me?" She glanced coyly over her shoulder at the startled Drule. With wary deference, he carefully made his way toward the shimmering woman on the lake. He watched through narrowed eyes as she took a second, pristine lamp and lit it from the dusty relic. The silver casing on the second was immaculate and shimmered in all the firelight. Both lanterns flickered on the pedestal before her as she carefully replaced the covering over the first one.

"It has become a custom among our people that, when we strike an accord of peace, we share the fire that brought us here, in hopes that a little piece of our love can help warm another," she explained. Her voice was softer, but it still carried a formal lilt to the tone as she presented the new lantern to him. "On behalf of all Arus, all the kings and queens that came before me, I say with admittedly astonishing surprise, that it is my pleasure to present a piece of the Everflame to the Drule Empire."

Her words were nearly lost in the thundering of the fireworks overhead, but the look in her eyes as she stared up into his in the orange glow around them was unmistakable.

He tore his gaze from her to glance down to the remarkable object before him. With a hesitant movement, he gingerly took the shimmering light into his palms. The magnitude of the offering made the metal feel heavier in his grasp than it should have, and with a near-painful slowness, he pulled the peace offering to his chest slowly.

Satisfied that he had it in his grip, she turned and waved to her people cheering in the firelight.

"Let the Festival begin!"

Gathering her own artifact to her chest, she smiled up at the still-stunned king and led the way off the crystal-clear bridge. He followed numbly behind her, occasionally glancing down to the mesmerizing lamp in his palms.

"Is the story true?" He murmured after they stepped on solid land and he came to stand beside her. Allura fixed her gaze on him and shrugged.

"As far as I know. It's the story that has been handed down through the royal family. There's no written account, and I certainly wasn't there," she added with a smile.

"Princess," Coran spoke coming to her side.

"Oh, thank you," she murmured as he took the Everflame from her hands to return it to the catacombs for safe keeping. She turned her attention back to Lotor.

"Would you like to wander the Festival with me? There's all sorts of activities. Games, performers…" she trailed off, gesturing across the moat where people and tents were set up.

"It would be my pleasure," he murmured, recovering himself. "I would like to place this inside where it will be safe," he added before turning to make his way back to the castle.

Allura smiled after the man, a strange blush on her cheeks. The idea of presenting a piece of the flame to him had been only an impulsive thought as she had been preparing for the opening ceremony. She had had little time to contemplate how well-received it would be, but it had _felt_ right, and Allura had never been one to second-guess her instincts.

Her lips pursed together in a slight pout, wishing she could read the cryptic man better. He flashed from stoic and cold to hot-tempered and angry seemingly without warning. Occasionally, and with even _less_ predictability, he had seemed to display acts of affection – or so she thought. His temperament was far from obvious, and his intentions often felt veiled.

 _Will I ever understand you,_ she thought almost sadly.

* * *

The lingering doubt had washed from her mind over the course of the next four hours. The couple had – awkwardly at first – wandering through the festival, eyeing the tents, games and entertainment. Allura could barely walk twenty paces before another citizen rushed up to her to greet her.

Lotor found himself constantly amazed by how many names she knew, even asking about spouses and children. _She knows them all_ , he thought with bewilderment. He would be hard-pressed to even identify one of his own non-noble citizens by name.

They had watched the sword swallowers with rapt attention – and very diverse reactions. Lotor had been fascinated and excited by the dangerous sport while the gentle woman at his side clutched her hands to her mouth in avid worry. The king had laughed triumphantly and clapped when the show ended; Allura only breathed a weak sigh of relief.

As the night waxed on, the two had tired of the more densely populated areas of the festival and Allura had guided them to a more secluded area. Talking had been near-impossible with all the noise around them in the heart of the celebration. As they sat on a distant hill, side-by-side in the shadow of a tree cast by moonlight, Allura glanced to him.

Even shrouded in darkness, the woman embodied the sun itself. In the distance, the constant stream of fireworks continued to light up the sky and flickering lights shimmered from the valley below as the festivities continued in full force. Only the soft noises of the far away explosions could be heard.

"Everflame," he murmured, watching her carefully. The young queen only shrugged, turning her eyes away from him and glancing back to the lights in the sky.

"It is yours to do with what you see fit. I don't expect any kind of ceremony or reverence or…" She trailed off as he touched her chin, turning her gaze back to him. She blinked up at the strange, dark man looming over her in the darkness.

"Thank you," he said softly after a moment. It was not a phrase she had heard him speak before, and her wide eyes betrayed that sentiment. He laughed at her darkly, the menacing chuckle echoing off the trees. Allura shivered, suddenly reminded of how isolated she had allowed them to become. She averted her eyes once more.

"I'm glad you came tonight," she changed the subject quickly. "This is an important holiday for me and I… I find myself pleased I was able to share it with you. I'm not sure I could explain why, but, it feels… _good._ " She reached up and touched her chest lightly, still processing the strange emotions in her body. "I think… well, I don't always think my words make sense. Perhaps I was hoping for another way to explain how I feel," she hedged with a shrug.

She reclined comfortably into the soft grass and folded her hands behind her head.

"Fascinating," he murmured softly. She glanced over to him curiously just as he leaned toward her. Allura flinched away on instinct when his strong frame hovered over hers.

"What are you doing," she whispered, watching him with open wariness.

"Nothing that you don't desire," he replied after a moment. His left arm propped himself up bodily off the woman, leaving his right hand free to touch her cheek with a reverent gentleness.

She snorted in frustration at his touch and turned her head to the side.

"We can't keep on like this," he insisted, touching her jaw and turning her head to look back at him. Her fathomless blue eyes locked on his as a brilliant, azure firework lit up the sky overhead and cast an ethereal glow to her depths.

"And how do you propose I trust you? I tried that, and I was _wrong_ ," she whispered as his thumb traced over her bottom lip.

"You weren't wrong," he said quietly after a moment.

"But I was," she insisted. "I thought I actually wanted something, but my desire was a fabrication by your hands."

"But what if it wasn't?" His own golden eyes glinted carefully as she struggled to contemplate the reality he described.

"How can I know the difference when you try and force what you want on everyone around you? How can I know the difference between your will and my choice when you blur those boundaries?"

A thoughtful silence settled over them. As seconds ticked into minutes, Lotor shifted his weight slightly. The queen braced when his thigh settled on the opposite side of her so he effectively loomed above her. He watched with both satisfaction and frustration when her jaw tensed; she was bracing for battle. He stroked the taught bone once before brushing the back of his hand deftly across the softness of her throat.

"And what about now?" His question was soft in volume but rough as he restrained himself.

"What about now?" Allura whispered the question back to him.

"Am I fabricating anything now?"

The queen stilled and glanced around the darkness protecting them. Fiery displays lit up the sky, but they were utterly alone, nestled into the lush hillside. _It's not like he planted an aphrodisiac nearby this time,_ her mind reasoned. Allura glanced up to him and blushed.

"I suppose not," she conceded.

"You presented a priceless gift today," he murmured softly, lowing his lips to brush at her earlobe. Allura flushed hot at the gentle touch. His palm traced gently over her hip while he spoke.

"And so you want another," she glared up at him warily. She sucked in her breath suddenly when his own, warm exhale breezed across her throat before he planted a pointedly possessive kiss over her pulse point.

"No." His voice sounded like gravel. He shifted his weight to his thighs as he held himself just over her slim frame. Both his palms grasped gently at her waist, feather-light brushes flickering over her frame from her ribcage to her hips. She flushed warmer under his touch; the familiar quiver of need defied her logic to keep him at arm's length. His next sentence detonated a flood of heat through her blood and crippled her defenses.

"I want to return the favor."

* * *

 **Yay, another chapter! As always, I enjoy your thoughts and criticism! Thanks for reading!**


	13. Possession

**Chapter 13 - Possession**

* * *

Bathed in the first brush of dawn's light, Allura scurried back across the landscape, Lotor not far behind her. The revelries had subsided, most of the party-goers had called it for the night. A few of the more dedicated celebrating Arusians lay curled on their sides, asleep on the ground, taken by a night of drunken festivities.

"Shh," she hushed the king following right behind her as she crept into the castle. The main gate closed quietly behind them. Silent halls echoed their faint footfalls. Allura guided their way through the main foyer, heading toward the corridor that led back to her bedchambers.

"Allura." A voice caught her attention and she froze, her heart leaping into her throat. She swallowed and sighed, nodding to Lotor to continue on. With reticence, she turned and looked over her shoulder.

Keith was leaning against the doorframe to the parlor, watching her intently. His eyes skimmed over her form from her tangled hair to her rumpled gown.

"A word, please?" He gestured to the empty meeting room. She cut Lotor's growl off with a shake of her head, urging him to go on ahead of her. As she turned and made her way toward her commander, Lotor hesitated before reluctantly acquiescing, leaving the two alone. Once satisfied she was joining him, Keith peeled off the doorframe and walked into the room.

Allura followed quietly, pausing to shut the door behind her. She stood almost shamefully in the entry area as Keith paced a restless circle around her.

"Keith," she began, unable to handle the silence and the heavy, unspoken disapproval radiating from the man.

"I just have one question," he said quietly, pausing behind her. Allura's skin flushed hot with embarrassment when she felt him zip up the back of her dress. She buried her face in her palms in mortification.

The light touch of his palm on her elbow startled her. She glanced up as he guided her to one of the chairs. Defeated, she sat down in a swift motion. After a few paces Keith eased himself into a matching lounge across from her. He propped his elbows up on his knees and promptly buried his face in his hands.

After tiredly rubbing his face for a moment before letting his hands fall away, he glanced to her. Allura recognized his fatigue - he had likely been up all night awaiting her return.

"I just need to know, and please, for the blessed stars in the sky tell me the truth, we can figure it out if needed, I won't react impulsively," he paused as he begged. Allura's throat tightened.

"Yes?" Her question was a raspy whisper while her heart hammered so loudly in her chest, she was certain her ribs would shatter. Defeated, Keith exhaled again and laid all the cards on the table with a swift, blunt question.

"Did he force himself?"

Allura blinked as air rushed back into her lungs.

"Wh... what?" She felt genuine surprise flood her veins at the unexpected question.

"If he did, I won't kill him - not right away - but we'll need to start devising a strategy to extract you from this situation," he launched into a battle plan, speculating on tactics to break Allura's vows to the Drule. Allura smiled warmly across the cozy room at the man and his unfettered concern for her wellbeing.

"No, Keith, he didn't. Everything that has come to me in this... adventure," she used the word generously, "...has been of my own design and desire."

"He hasn't harmed you, or... forced... anything?" Keith studied her face. Allura blushed, she knew he was tracing the contours of the tangles in her hair.

"No, actually - that... that has surprised me too," she murmured honestly. "He's gotten cross a few times, as his temper is prone to do, but he's never struck me or tried to coerce anything physical. I..." she paused as a thought hit her.

"Allura?"

"I... I think I've slapped him more than he's touched me with any kind of aggression. ...and... I'm ashamed of that truth," she blushed at the realization. "...in this case, I believe myself to be the violent one."

Keith snorted in response.

"Hardly possible, I'm sure he deserved it," he drawled.

"Well, I _was_ frightened, but it really is no excuse to hurt someone. At any rate, no. He's done nothing like that to me," she emphasized. Relief washed over the commander and he leaned back in his chair.

"I'm... I can't say I'm glad about the situation, but... I'm comforted that you're well in all of it so far. If he ever crosses a line, I swear it. I _will_ protect you."

Allura blushed brightly at the gentle protectiveness from Keith.

"That all being said, I think it's time for me to get some sleep," he said as he rose from his chair. "You might want to get to your room. Nanny and Coran went to bed early in the evening. They might be up soon," he warned.

Allura's eyes widened and she leaped to her feet.

"Thank you so much for all your support," she whispered, leaning in and giving the man a hug. He gently returned the gesture before stepping back. Allura smiled shyly and left the parlor, quickly scanning the hallway for signs of her nursemaid. Finding the corridor empty, she broke into a jog toward her chambers.

* * *

Lotor was pacing in a slow circle in the center of the room when the door opened. He froze and looked over to the disheveled woman.

Allura noted that his hair was damp down his back and he smelled not of the earth and dirt, but of the crisp freshness that came with a shower.

"What did he want," he finally asked, his rigid stance betraying his concern. Allura smiled tiredly.

"Nothing too important," she explained. "I would like to shower though, I'll return." She disappeared into the bathroom to follow his lead and purge the dirt and sweat from her body. Allura glanced over her shoulder in time to see the man's eyes narrow dangerously but he said nothing. The queen sighed before stripping down once safe in the bath before committing her body to the hot water.

* * *

Allura exhaled, gathering her nerves as she pushed open the door. Wrapped in nothing but a towel, the unmistakable look of insatiable desire glinted in Lotor's eyes. He sat quietly on the edge of the bed, dressed in black silk pants. His gaze locked on her as she made her way to her wardrobe.

"I want to know what he said," Lotor commented quietly, clearly still honing in on the prior conversation. He watched with languid fascination as she struggled to pull clean undergarments up over her hips while still holding the towel around herself. With her back to him, Allura decided there was no better time than to recount the conversation. Nervously removing the towel, she quickly pulled on her pink nightgown while speaking. While modesty demanded she cover herself, she recalled with an odd reality that he _was_ her husband.

"He... he wanted to check on me," she hedged finally.

"How so." His voice was low and commanding, quick to respond to her reluctant answers.

Allura paused and pulled the damp hair out from the back of her gown. Wordlessly, she sat down at her vanity and began to gently comb out her hair.

"He asked if you had... if… you had… had forced yourself on me," she stammered. When he said nothing at first, Allura's eyes nervously glanced to him in the mirror. His face was cold and impassive. After what felt like a century, he finally spoke again, his voice still cold and smooth like steel.

"And what did you tell him?"

She set the brush down and turned in the chair to look at him.

"The truth. I told him that everything that has happened has... has been my choice," she finished. He watched her, his expression veiled still. He followed her with his gaze as she rose suddenly and glided to the large window in her room. Touching a palm screen near it, she dialed the transparency down. The clear glass suddenly darkened with a tint, tossing the room into lightlessness. The only dawn coming through was no brighter than moonlight, effectively simulating night for the day sleepers.

"I have never forced anything upon a female," he said at last. When Allura turned and looked at him, she wore her surprise openly on her face. He chuckled darkly. "Don't look so shocked," he murmured. Curious, she glided closer, coming to sit on the side of the bed opposite him.

"I... I just thought with... with the girls, you know..."

"Oh I assure you, every woman I've had has been willing," he promised her. She blushed brightly, knowing that included her. She snuggled under the blankets, watching the ceiling as the mattress shifted with her husband's weight.

"I only had a few that interested me, anyway," he added, settling onto his back next to her. "You seem surprised by this," he added, glancing to her. She just shrugged in response.

"You haven't ever struck me as the type to take the word 'no' with much grace," she said, watching him with curiosity. With a sensuality that she wasn't aware she possessed, she leisurely turned onto her side to study him openly.

"Allura," he began, his eyes honed on her. "I am far, far too proud of my skills to ever stoop to _forcing_ a woman to my bed. That being said, no woman has ever told me no, either."

"I did," she muttered.

"Not for forever," he grinned at her lethally. "Admittedly, it took longer than I would have liked, but all good things are worth waiting for," he purred. Allura's skin turned pink.

"Well, I suppose that makes more sense, knowing your pride had something to do with that."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Allura tossed him a playful smile as she shrugged.

"Your pride is grand enough to fell empires," she teased. "I don't think I've ever met anyone with a larger ego than yours."

Before he could respond to her quip, she surprised him by curling closer against his chest. He froze, startled by the shift in her demeanor. Allura had never presented an affectionate side toward him, and certainly not ever taken the first step in their waltz. Hesitantly, he unfolded his arms from behind his head and eased them around her body, pulling her close. The exhausted queen was quick to fall asleep, a surprised Lotor not far behind her.

* * *

"You're welcome to leave if you're so inclined," Allura frowned at the man across the room from her in the study. She sat daintily at a large desk, deftly scribing another round of letters. Lotor let his weight drop into a nearby chair as he crossed one boot over his knee. He watched with fascination as she warmed the stick of wax in her hand, letting the red liquid drip onto the back of the envelope. Once enough had gathered, she firmly pressed the Castle of Lions crest against the envelope, sealing the letter formally. Deft fingers set it aside to cool.

"Then come with me," he instructed. Allura set the wax stick down and turned her frustrated gaze on him.

"We've been here barely a day," she gestured to the sun outside the study window. Their nap had been brief – just enough to recuperate from staying awake all night, but not long enough as to completely invert their sleeping schedule. "Why are you so anxious to return to Doom?"

"I do not like to be away from my home," he said firmly.

"Neither do I," she uttered in response, mirroring his firmness. With a glare, she glanced back to the burning candle in front of her.

"Allura," he persisted, leaning forward in his chair.

"If you want to go back, that's fine, Lotor. I'm going to be here for a bit longer," she reiterated.

"Doom is safer," he insisted.

"For you, perhaps," she murmured quietly, her eyes riveted on the crimson droplets falling to the parchment. "I fully trust the people under my domain to respect the orders I have given. No one here will be trying to strangle you unless you give them a reason to," she added pointedly, pressing the seal into the puddle. Her eyes snapped up to his, the candlelight reflecting off their oceanic depths.

Unable to stay cross, Allura's face softened.

"I'm sorry," she murmured. "That was too far. I just don't understand why you're so insistent."

"I have matters to attend to," he replied stiffly.

"Such as?"

"Nothing that would interest you."

Allura sat back and regarded the confounding man before her. He was an utter dichotomy in every sense of the word. As soon as the young queen felt like she was getting a handle on understanding the machinations of his mind, he threw her a curveball.

Fierce and bloody on the battlefield, he had demonstrated a far less rugged side in their bedroom. Intent on dragging her into the political minefield of his Empire, he was quick to shut her out of certain matters. She frowned.

She set the letter aside to cool and drew a third in front of her, wordlessly looking back to sealing her work.

"You never know, it might interest me," she murmured.

"It wouldn't."

She glanced up and glared at him, irritated by his arrogant attempt to hold control over her.

"You sound so certain of that."

"Allura, when it comes to you, there is very little I'm certain about. This is the rare oddity."

"Now I'm just plain curious," she teased, a playful light illuminating in her eyes. He only chuckled evilly in response, shaking his head once.

"It can wait a day," he bartered.

"How about we leave tonight, then?" Allura truly tried to meet the man halfway.

"That will suffice." Allura's gaze lingered on him a moment longer, her lips curling into an amused smile before she glanced down to melt more wax.

"You are truly an enigma," she murmured, more to herself.

"I could say the same thing about you." Allura only blushed in response, biting down on her bottom lip as she pressed the seal into the wax.

* * *

The queen glanced around the empty hallway of Castle Doom. They had only been back a couple hours before her husband had disappeared off the radar completely. Allura found herself stalking the halls of the castle with an authority she never believed she would possess.

Her pink and gold gown trailed behind her, the blue stole standing out starkly against the cheerful garments, her crown shimmering in the faint light of the dreary corridor. Her heels hit the stone floor with confidence and her strides echoed around her.

She had stopped the occasional guardsman to question King Lotor's whereabouts, but had received few answers. Allura pouted, crossing her arms over her chest as she glanced around her. An eerie sense of _déjà vu_ enveloped her when her eyes noticed something in the wall. The steel paneling had a concave divot in its otherwise flat structure. Her heart skipped a beat as the ghostly memory of Zarkon's hand around her throat surfaced.

Her skin flushed with panic and her heart raced. Allura stumbled back from the spot where she very nearly died, struggling to catch her breath.

"My Queen, are you well?"

She glanced over abruptly to see a concerned guardsman watching her. The unfamiliar face helped quell the bubbling panic rising in her and she nodded her head once.

"Yes, thank you, I just… I just had a moment, it is no matter. Could… could you help me with something?" Allura asked the question as a thought occurred to her.

"Of course My Queen, what can I do?"

She hesitated.

"I'd like to find the witch Haggar. Can you help me find her?" _Stars know I can't seem to find my husband. Maybe she'll have an answer._

"Of course. I can't be certain she's there at this very moment, but she is often in her lair. I can show you where that is, if you'd like."

"Yes, please." _Anywhere but here._ She tossed the warped metal one last, wary look before following the guard.

* * *

"To what do I owe the honor, my dear?" The crone cackled as Allura stepped into the room carefully. Her blue eyes scanned the strange environment, taking in all the specimen jars, bubbling cauldrons and magical relics strewn about. Her hands remained folded in front of her, careful not to touch anything.

"I…" Allura trailed off, stunned as she saw what appeared to be a severed head floating in a jar.

"That is Sir Krugil," Haggar muttered, catching her gaze.

"What did he do," she whispered, horrified by the preserved decapitation. The witch tilted her head curiously at the queen before responding.

"He was a war hero," she explained. "He died honorably on the battlefield, and wanted to be saved until he could be revived as an immortal. He's suspended in liquid magic, my dear. Unconscious, but very much still alive until the time comes we can regenerate his body." She glided toward the vibrant woman's side curiously. "Did you think he was beheaded as a punishment?"

Allura's eyes snapped to Haggar's, and her cheeks colored with shame.

"…I did, yes," she admitted after a moment. "…I'm sorry."

"Don't be, we are certainly prone to doing that, as well. Where do you think the Pit of Skulls came from?" The old woman laughed darkly at Allura's paled expression. "There, there," she comforted, reaching up to touch the queen on the shoulder. "What can this old woman do for you?"

"I… …" She trailed off, frowning. "Do you know where Lotor is?"

"I do," she said. The queen's eyes widened and she clasped her hands together in front of her.

"Oh, that's wonderful! I've been looking for him all day. Where is he?"

Haggar's head tilted silently and Allura got the impression the witch was, at the very least, smirking at her if not outright smiling beneath the cowl.

"I can't tell you that, I'm afraid."

"Whyever not? What in the world is that man doing that he thinks I shouldn't know about?" Allura glared at the older Drule. Haggar only shrugged once.

"Again, I can't say. I can only confirm that he's an idiot."

Allura's fury evaporated in a tidal wave of confusion at the honest assessment from the woman.

"What did you say, Haggar?"

"I said he's an idiot. Don't tell me that's news to you, sweetie," she murmured coyly.

"I… I didn't know… I thought I was the only one…"

"Who had the fortitude to call him that to his face?" Haggar leaned in and elbowed Allura conspiratorially. "Us girls need to stick together when it comes to him." The queen reeled back, blindsided by the odd camaraderie from the old woman. The same entity who had cooked up the designs to bring destruction against her now laughed quietly with her at the expense of her husband.

 _No one is truly a monster. Everyone just has their own lens. Never stop seeing that._

She gasped as a whisper of a memory from her childhood floated to the surface.

"What is it, dear?"

"I… I just remembered something my father had said to me when I was very little. I had forgotten it."

"Ah, memory can be fickle like that. Come, I'll show you around," she began before turning away and leading the way around the dark laboratory. Allura cast one, last wary look to Sir Krugil before following behind the old woman as she pointed out various experiments, potion stations or specimens. She cackled softly to herself as Allura did exactly as she predicted – the woman planted herself nose-to-glass in front of the Robeast Enhancement Chamber. Her palms splayed against the protective barrier.

"So this is where it all happens," she murmured, looking up at the ray beams in the ceiling that spurred the growth in the beasts.

"It is," the witch admitted, hovering behind the queen. "Do you have any questions?" She glided over to meet her at the glass, eyeing the mechanical masterpiece that created the weapons.

" _Why_ ," she whispered, torn by the thought of destruction to her planet. Haggar only shrugged in response.

"Why Voltron?"

Allura's frosty gaze snapped to the Drule woman at the comment.

"To preserve our way of life, to protect that which our people need, of course!"

"That's your answer, then," Haggar replied, nodding to the robeast chamber. At Allura's blank, stunned expression, she continued. "Do you really think Planet Doom has the means to sustain itself? Can we grow the food we need, harness the energy to fuel our engines or mine the metals required for life?"

When Allura remained in a stunned silence, Haggar floated away from her, untroubled by the lack of an answer.

"I…"

"The machine is also used to make other things larger, as well. When we do find a mineral or a plant that we can use, we'll reproduce it here to create more of it," she explained. Haggar looked over at the gentle woman. Allura's gaze was not on the robeast chamber, but it had fixated on something across the room.

"What is that," she asked, peeling off the glass and moving around the tables of experiments and tombs, gliding deftly toward a cauldron that pulsed with pink energy.

"It is nothing, do not touch that, Your Highness," Haggar's voice tightened as the queen drew closer to the brewing station.

"Is… is it making noise?" Allura stopped in front of it. She kept her hands demurely folded in front of her, but her skin reflected the eerie, pink hue.

"…can you hear something?" The crone sidled up to Allura to peer around her at her own work, curiousity aroused by the queen's words. "What do you hear, dear?"

Allura only stared at the concoction warily.

"…my name. Why do I hear my name? Why is it calling to me?"

"Because I'm too good at what I do," she muttered softly under her breath. "Just leave it be, don't touch it." The witch answered, raising her voice with the last sentence. Allura glanced to the woman before looking back to the cauldron. Reverently, she reached out, her hand extending toward the mixture.

Haggar's gnarled, claw-like hand grasped the queen's wrist firmly, shattering her trance-like state. Allura gasped in alarm.

"I'm sorry! I don't know why, I know you said not to, but I wasn't thinking, and I-"

"Be still," Haggar admonished the soft woman gently. "Let's move away from it now." She guided the queen from the brewing area as Allura tossed one look back toward the fuchsia liquid. "Pay it no mind, it is nothing of consequence. Now. Any other questions?"

"I'm sorry," she apologized again. "I don't know why I felt compelled to do that."

"Your idiot husband will be looking for you soon," she murmured, changing the subject. Allura's ashen face colored as she giggled.

"Very well," she smiled. "Thank you for entertaining me, Haggar." The golden queen flashed the old witch a genuine smile before taking her leave of the laboratory.

"Ah, I haven't felt this young in ages," the witch muttered pleasantly in her wake.

* * *

Allura stood in front of the long mirror, brushing out her hair. Fresh from a shower, she stood barefoot in their bedchamber, a towel wrapped around her chest under her arms. Every minute or so, her eyes would flash to the door, expecting the king to come through. He'd left her side once they had arrived back on his homeworld, and she grew more frustrated as the hours waned on. After leaving Haggar's lair, Allura had still been unable to locate the man and had simply retired to their bedchamber.

 _Did you want his company? Wouldn't it better suit you to be left alone?_

She chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully. The honest answer to that question eluded her. Logically, she should rejoice in the reprieve from his infuriatingly dominating presence. And yet…

Allura shook her head once and pulled open the dresser. After quickly tugging on some modest undergarments, she reached for a nightgown and paused. _Why should he get all the pants?_ She closed the wardrobe and pulled open one of the drawers on his side and promptly dug for a pair of pants. After locating a pair of steel-colored hipwear, she began searching for a shirt.

 _Allura._

She froze.

"What," she whispered, looking around the room. The bedchamber remained empty, even as whispers of her name touched at her ears. "Who's there?"

 _Allura…_

She looked over her shoulder, her wide eyes staring down at the neatly folded shirts beneath her palms.

"Is… what? Is it coming from…?" The queen quickly started shifting the piles of clothes around digging after the source of the sound. She froze, looking at the bottom of the drawer. With trembling hands, she withdrew a single, glass vial glowing with fluorescent pink liquid. Her eyes widened as it whispered her name again, her memory flashing briefly back to Haggar.

"It's here…" A warning siren flared in her mind, nurtured by the admonition that the witch had given her. Despite her best logic, Allura couldn't bring herself to set the piece of glass down. It sung to her in a way she couldn't describe.

 _Alluuuuura..._

Before she could stop herself, trembling hands uncorked the vial and the scent of roses sweeter than anything she had ever experienced coated her senses. She exhaled in bliss, savoring the delightful scent. The queen wouldn't have been able to describe a more perfect, a more articulated vision had she been asked. While she had never experienced it before that moment, she was absolutely certain there was nothing more ideological. Memories of warnings faded in a haze of utter happiness as her fingertips brushed over the glass with reverence.

 _Taste me._

* * *

 **Yay another chapter! As usual, I love your feedback, whether you like it or hate it, please let me know!**


	14. Paroxysm

**Chapter 14 - Paroxysm**

* * *

Lotor burst through the doors to his bedchambers, exhausted. He tossed a quick glance Allura's way as he made his way to the bath. She lay curled beneath the sheets quietly. His gaze didn't linger long enough to even check if she were awake as he pushed through the second doorway. Starting the shower, he stripped down and stepped under the hot water, eager for the sweat and dirt to wash of his body.

He allowed the warm water to beat down on his head, cleansing his hair and body while filling the room with steam. He had no desire to explain to Allura where he had been and wanted to purify his body from the filth that coated him.

 _Please, just be honest._

Even her voice echoed in his mind. He cursed.

"Not this one, my sweet."

 _Even if it's something we won't ever agree on._

He scowled, digging his fingers into his hair to loosen the grime. Droplets ran down the contours of his muscles, dripping to the tile floor as he cleaned himself. Lotor exhaled, dropping his arms to his side, standing beneath the waterfall from the showerhead.

Seconds dragged into minutes, and minutes became eternity as the water scalded his skin and burned his mind. With little else left to do in the shower, he turned the water off, toweled off and secured the soft fabric around his waist. He braced for Allura's wrath as he pulled open the door.

"Unholy demons below!"

Lotor cursed loudly, nearly dropping his towel at the sight before him.

Allura sat demurely in the center of their bed, dressed simply in his royal tunic. Her bare legs curled around her as she watched him playfully, chewing on her bottom lip.

"How was the shower?" Her voice practically purred across the air toward him.

"What fresh hell," he muttered, staring bewildered at the sensual minx. With an unholy grace, she rose to her feet and glided across the floor to him. His tunic was large on her, but even with its length it barely covered her torso and left fairly little to the imagination. Her hand brushed away some of his damp hair as she stared up into his eyes.

"I thought wearing just the royal drape might have been... insensitive," she murmured, tugging the red cape off her shoulders and setting it aside.

Lotor swallowed. Her fingers began undoing the buttons down the front of the vestment, her eyes never leaving his.

"...Allura, are you well?" He reached toward her, intending to check for a fever. His outstretched palm stretched for her temple, but Allura caught it and drew it down to her ribcage instead.

"I feel... _alive,_ " she whispered the last word as if it were a secret.

"What…" He stared, completely stunned. Lotor attempted to pull his hand away to touch her face once more, but she firmly pressed his palm into her chest and arched her back toward him.

"Come to bed, Husband…"

"Allura," he choked on her name as her other hand deftly removed the towel from his waist. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," she pouted at him playfully, her hand tracing along his abdomen, letting her fingertips explore the contours of his muscles. He sucked in his breath sharply before grasping her wrist. She giggled.

"Enough," he commanded. Allura just wiggled against him playfully in response. She tugged on her trapped hand but his fingers only tightened around her.

"We can play that way, too. Come," she said again, tugging in her wrist in his manacle of a grip, attempting to coax him to the bed. He growled softly in frustration, snapping his other palm from her breast and restraining her other hand. She stood before him, hands withheld from his body as his tunic draped over her torso and slid off one of her shoulders, a deep V-neck plunging past her breasts from open buttons.

"Well this isn't much fun for me," she murmured as he held her at arm's length. His eyes narrowed and in a near-violent move, he shoved her back-first onto the bed, pinning her down. She mewed in excitement, further arousing his suspicions. She wiggled her hips against his naked form in a tantalizing display.

"Who are you," he thundered. She blinked in surprise and her mirth quelled temporarily as she contemplated his question, yet the playful light never left her eyes.

"Who would you like me to be tonight?"

"Enough, wench. Where is Allura?" He released her wrists and stormed across the room, promptly putting his pants on before glaring at the rather explicit display before him. The strange blonde on the bed only pouted, sitting up with an ethereal grace. She watched him dress himself with a sensuality that was foreign to the woman he knew. She raised her gaze from his hips to his eyes.

"You're not having fun," she commented openly on his state of arousal – or lack thereof.

"I will give you one last chance before I have you killed," he warned dangerously. "Where is Allura? If you've harmed her in any way," he drew his lazon sword, the light glinting off the contours of his bare chest.

Her eyes widened in shock as he stalked toward her on the bed.

"I'm right here! Are you mad?"

"I haven't gone mad, _you_ have! Allura would never do what you're doing! What kind of fool do you take me for? Who put you up to this? Is this Father's doing?" He stormed toward her, marking as the lust in her eyes disappeared and was replaced by fear.

"I have no idea what you're talking about! Lotor, it's me!" She rose to her feet before the bed and took a few steps toward him, palms outstretched. "I'm right here," she whispered. "And I want you." She deftly touched his bare biceps with her fingertips before reaching up to touch his face, but he was faster.

"Last warning," he murmured dangerously. His left palm closed around her throat and her hands froze mid-air. The last remaining traces of sensuality vanished from her eyes as unadulterated terror seeped in.

"Please don't," she whispered as he squeezed unkindly.

"I currently have no idea where my wife is." His voice was low and dangerous. With each sentence, he slowly backed her toward the bed, his hold firm upon her flesh. "And there is an impersonator in my chambers. That puts you in a very, _very_ dangerous situation. Just tell me everything you know, even if it's very little, and I'll let you live. Did someone send you to distract me? Do you know who? When-" He froze as a gentle sound echoed around the otherwise silent chamber. The soft chime of glass on tile caught his attention and he glanced down to find what his toe had touched.

He felt his blood chill to ice when his eyes fell on a single, empty vial. He slowly looked back to the terrified woman in his hold. Wordlessly, he released her throat and dropped his hand to his side. His sword quickly found its sheath again.

"You didn't."

She backed away from him, tears brimming the corners of her eyes and her hands clasped in front of her chest.

"Tell me you didn't, Allura!" He reached down and snagged up the piece of glass and brandished it at her. She stared at him wordlessly, looking between the vial and his furious face.

He cursed loudly and slammed the glass on the ground. Allura winced as it shattered across the floor, tiny flecks of glass scattering. Without a sound, she fled the room, leaving the king standing in the middle of his chamber, surrounded by the destruction of his own making.

He cursed.

* * *

Minutes bled into hours as Lotor sat on the edge of his bed, feet planted on the floor. He couldn't take his eyes from the shrapnel littering the tile around him. It glittered dangerously in the firelight, taunting him. He could feel pieces of glass digging into the soles of his feet, but he didn't mind it. The aching pain was a welcome contrast to the chilling dread settling into his bones.

 _How did she find it?_

He exhaled, placing his face in his palms.

 _Such fear._

He hadn't seen such terror in her eyes since the day she had agreed to wed him. With patience he hadn't known he possessed and tenderness he would never admit to, he had warmed her to him. With time, he had even coaxed her to his bed. In a single, arrogant moment, he had shattered it all.

His eyes opened and stared at the debris on the floor, unable to handle the memory of his hand around her throat. Lotor groaned, realizing if he had seen his mistake sooner, he might have salvaged her trust. Instead, he had threatened to kill her and even held her by force in the precise manner his father had done. Lotor looked toward a clock on the dresser. It was well into the morning hours and roughly six since she had left.

He found himself wondering where she had fled to. The second bedchamber? The other end of the castle? _Arus?_ As much as the king yearned to go after her and sooth her, he suspected that she would not welcome his presence. Unsure what to do next, he sat sentinel in his room, his only company the crackle of the fireplace.

A knock sounded.

Lotor's head snapped to the door and he blinked. He held his breath, waiting, when a second, quieter knock echoed. He rose and carefully made his way to the door, touching the palm pad to open it. He stared, struck, by the sight before him.

Allura stood before him, wrapped in blankets he recognized from the second bedroom. She appeared otherwise undressed underneath, but he couldn't be certain. She clutched the makeshift robe around her as she shifted her weight on her bare feet. Her eyes didn't leave the floor even as he opened the door and stared at her blankly.

"Can… can we talk now?" As she whispered, her voice trembled. "…about last night?"

He swallowed and nodded once. Realizing she didn't see the nod, he spoke aloud.

"Let's go to the other room. There's… the glass on the floor is still there," he said stiffly.

Without taking her eyes from the floor, she turned away and numbly made her way back to the room she had slept in. He followed behind her, the strange sensation of anxiety lacing his veins.

She plopped down on the edge of the bed, still drawing her blankets around her body. Her eyes never left the floor as he shut the door behind him. Her hair was completely free, no braids about her face, and it was disheveled. It flooded over the bunched up covers and even concealed part of her face.

"I have no idea why I behaved that way," she whispered after a moment. "I have no explanation for why I threw myself at you like that. …I'm sorry."

He stared.

"What?" Dumbfounded, he could only articulate his confusion.

"I…" She reached up and touched her forehead wearily. "I'm ashamed of that behavior. I have… no answers for such actions. I don't… Stars above I have a headache," she muttered, massaging her forehead.

"I do," he said after a moment.

"You have a headache, too?" She frowned, still eyeing the dark floor tiles. She scooted back on the bed to sit cross-legged, hiding her bare feet beneath the warm blankets.

"I have an explanation." When Allura stayed quiet, he continued after a minute's pause. "You found a container that had a pink liquid in it, didn't you? And you drank it, am I right?"

She blinked and nodded once.

"…I'm sorry. I don't know why I did. It told me to, I… it was like it called to me."

Silence.

"I had Haggar make that for you," he admitted quietly.

Allura blinked, remembering the cauldron in the lair. She slowly raised her eyes from the floor and looked across the room at him. If expressions were weapons, Lotor's heart would have been pierced by the stunned betrayal on her face.

"You… asked her… to make something to make me act that way?" Perhaps it was the fact that her words weren't angry nor loud that made them all the more devastating. She was simply, softly articulating a bewildered confusion.

"It was a while ago," he explained gruffly, averting his eyes. "When…" he trailed off as he realized his reasoning didn't matter in the end. He exhaled before answering her simply. "Yes."

Allura stayed thoughtfully quiet for a moment longer, further driving the weapon through his chest.

"Is that… what you wanted?"

"No," he grumbled. He glanced back to her, meeting her confusion with his own, tumultuous loss.

"But you did at one point," she pressed.

"I… It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does," she insisted gently. "Tell me. Tell me what you were thinking. What you wanted. What you still want – I… I can't read you, Lotor. I need you to _talk_ to me. …Please."

He growled softly and looked across the room.

"I was frustrated when you were so cold to me. I wanted a way around that. So… that happened. And I… …it never got used. We figured things out on our own without it. Somehow you found it anyway and… I should have destroyed that vile thing a long time ago."

Silent seconds became minutes as Allura took her time in choosing her next statement, mulling over the information he gave her.

"Do you want your harem back?" She tilted her head to the side curiously, watching him. His eyes snapped to hers at the question.

"The hell? What does that… What?" He blinked as the faintest of a smile twitched at Allura's lips at his confusion.

"Intimacy seems to be a… point of contention between us. I fear I am a bit… less indulgent in it than perhaps you are used to with your… companions," she chose her words carefully. "Is that… Would having that available again help… you?" She blushed brightly as she tried to delicately choose her words.

"You think I would choose those whores over you?" Allura flinched at the word before frowning back at him.

" _Slaves_ ," she corrected with frustration. "They weren't yours by choice," she said darkly. He stared at her intently. "But yes, if… someone with more experience and skill who could satisfy your physical needs better could… help us communicate better," she trailed off, fumbling awkwardly with the question.

"There is no single person in the universe itself that I desire more beneath me than you," he said with a solemnity that sent shivers down her spine. She swallowed nervously.

"And what happens when I'm not enough? When… it's not… often? Lotor, I've… never had another," she blushed brightly at the admission – a statement Lotor had long ago assumed to be a fact. "I can't be like… like those girls were. I don't…" She just sighed in frustration, bowing her head as she looked back to the floor. "…I'm sorry."

Allura gasped gently as she felt his palms touch her temples. The fierce king was on his knees in front of her, his lips pressing reverently to her forehead.

"Do not apologize."

She blushed, tilting her head up to look to him, a shy smile touching her lips.

"I do have one last question," she murmured, shifting to face him as he eased himself next to her on the mattress.

"Anything," he promised.

"If the…" she paused and bit down on her bottom lip, contemplating how to best word her thought. "…If the point of the… potion, I guess, was to… encourage that behavior… …why were you so angry last night? I mean… wasn't that exactly what you wanted? Wasn't that the point of it in the first place?"

He stared down at her and shook his head once, trailing the back of his hand along her cheek lightly.

"No. But, there are two questions in there," he clarified. "The reason I never tried to slip you the magic before then is that I… decided I didn't want to. I preferred to wait." He shifted uncomfortably."The second part… I was angry because… you were so different. You were not Allura. I genuinely thought you were someone else, sent to distract me. …I was concerned for you."

"Is… is that why you…" She reached up and touched her throat gently and watched as his eyes darkened.

"I am not proud of that. But yes. Had I realized what had happened sooner, I would have handled that situation completely differently, I assure you."

He stared, struck as she simply smiled up at him openly. Detaching her arm from the pile of sheets she wore like a queen's gown, Allura reached up to touch his cheek gently.

"You wouldn't touch me, even when I begged you to," she murmured. "You knew it wasn't really me in my mind. I never took you to be the gentleman type, to be honest," she giggled softly.

He couldn't believe the stunning woman before him.

"No more secrets though? I… I don't want to sound like a broken record about this, Lotor, but I really mean it. I want to trust you. …I'd like you to trust me to be understanding, too. …Or… at the very least," she paused. "…I'd like you to trust that even if I don't understand, I'll listen."

"You fled the room last night."

"I was afraid. And not entirely of sound mind," she admitted. "…but we're talking now, aren't we? I'm listening, Lotor. I'm listening to you. I _want_ to learn. But I need a teacher," she added gently.

There existed no words in his language to describe the measure of pride he felt swell in his soul at the delicate words uttered by the fragile woman. She was so small, so gentle, and yet enduring and fierce. She was the antithesis of what anyone else would be in her position. She was neither fearful, timid and submissive nor bitter, cold and hateful.

"Magnificent," he murmured reverently.

"What is?" She looked curious. He simply chuckled darkly.

"You." When her brow furrowed in confusion, he laughed openly. His eyes never left hers and after a moment's contemplation, he decided to take a chance. For once, he would release a little control. "…Would you like to see what I was doing yesterday?"

He frowned as her eyes lit up in sheer delight.

"I would, yes! You would share that with me?"

"I warn you – it's likely not something that will be pleasant for you. It's why I've kept it from you. You may not like it or agree with it. But… clearly trying to keep things from you has not… benefited me. Or you. So, with that warning, if you would still like to see, I will show you."

"Yes! I want to know everything!"

"Are you certain of that?"

Allura felt her warmth and excitement chill at the lethal tone to his voice. She swallowed nervously.

"…yes," she answered with more calmness. "…even if I won't like it. I'd rather know than not know. ...After all, it hasn't been our differences that have caused us strife, Lotor. ...It's been our secrets."

He studied her for several minutes, stunned by her intuitive perception.

"Very well," he acquiesced. "Though you might want to get dressed before we go."

* * *

 **Another installment! A bit shorter than usual, but I feel like there was some important information crammed in. Thank you for reading this far, and as always, crits and comments are always welcomed!**


	15. Purgation

**Chapter 15 – Purgation**

* * *

"Where are we?"

Allura's voice echoed off the narrow hallway as she descended down what seemed like hundreds of steps. Stone worn smooth beneath her feet slowed her gait, worried she might slip her footing and tumble. The aged staircase had long lost any of its traction, and the stone itself even dipped in the center of each step from use.

Dim sconces littered the wall as the staircase wound in a tight spiral. Lotor was two paces in front of her, a torch in his right hand. He paused and turned to look back at her. Even two steps lower than her, his towering height still brought him eye-to-eye with his queen.

"Are you sure you want to continue?"

Allura hesitated, chewing on her bottom lip. The dark passageway was damp and left chills on her skin. Part of her wanted to flee the area and to put as much distance between her and their destination as possible. The darkness that seeped through the walls made her have to resist the urge to throw herself out into the sunlight to sunder the shadows. For the first time in her stay in Castle Doom, Allura felt the presence of something truly… _evil._

She crossed her arms over her chest protectively, but even the thick, luxurious fabric of her pink and gold gown didn't ward off the dread. She was determined to see it through, however, regardless of how much both of them wished she wouldn't. Allura nodded resolutely at him once.

He sighed, almost in disappointment, before turning and continuing to lead the descent into darkness. After a second's pause and a flicker of hesitation, she followed behind him. Her garments trailed regally behind her, the navy drape concealing her bare shoulders but doing little against the permeating cold. With each step, the darkness felt thicker, the coldness felt damper and the evilness felt… _closer._ It pulsed with a heartbeat that felt entirely too organic.

Without warning, he froze again.

"Lotor, I told you, I want to-" Before she could finish her assurance to continue, he spoke.

"We're here."

With his back to the gentle woman, he carefully pushed open a heavy, rugged steel door. As it swung into the dark room, the hinges groaned and squealed in protest. He remained frozen in the doorway, as if contemplating something deeply.

"Lotor...?"

With no explanation, he stepped into the room and brandished the torch toward her.

"Careful of the floor," he said stiffly. "The filth that covers this place is not fit to even touch the bottom of your shoes," he said with disgust.

"It's only dirt-" She paused as she stepped around him and looked to the floor. She squinted in the darkness. "...isn't it?" Allura tapped her toe on the earth, frowning at the strange texture beneath her.

"More or less."

The ground felt... moist. It was covered in a slick layer, and beneath that there was a texture unlike anything she had experienced before, though the queen was disinclined to reach down to touch it with her bare fingers. She swallowed nervously.

"A lantern is here," he gestured to a wall and Allura carefully walked to where he was. Next to a metal bracket, a large wick rested against the stone surface. A touch of the torch ignited the primitive light source, throwing the far reaches of the room into a dim, golden glow and illuminating their location with a comfortable level of light. She rested the torch itself in the nearby bracket and returned her attention to the floor.

"What in the stars," she whispered. Her dainty pink heels rested on top of a layer of mold and scum coating the same bricks from the stairwell. Atop the fungus, a vile-smelling liquid seeped between the bricks. It oozed dark in the firelight and smelled of death itself.

"As I said. This is not an unsafe place, but it is painfully unworthy of your presence."

"What... is it?" She looked around slowly as the flickering light bounced off something swinging from the ceiling. Carefully, she walked across the room toward it and paused at Lotor's snort.

"Yes?" Allura looked over her shoulder as he nodded to the train of her gown in the grime. She smiled gently at him. "It will wash."

"It's fit to be burned, not adorn you again."

Allura found a strange, new sensation - pride-like, she realized - in his lofty view of her. While she wasn't inclined to agree with his measurements, the protectiveness brought out traces of flattery in her. It was a foreign feeling - to be so valuable to another - that she felt her cheeks burn at the compliment. She looked back to the shining object that had caught her attention in the first place.

 _Chains._

She blinked, wide-eyed at the cold metal hanging before her. She reached up and curiously tapped her finger against one of the heavy rings, eliciting a chime as the heavy collection of links vibrated.

Folding her hands across her chest, Allura stepped around the free-swinging metal to explore further into the room.

"You still haven't told me where we are," she whispered. Lotor said nothing, trailing behind her. His eyes stayed rooted on the woman, watching her for any sign of distress, discomfort, or worse - horror.

"Back so soon?" A weak voice growled out from the shadows without warning, causing Allura to freeze in her tracks. Her eyes went wide as saucers as they honed in on the source.

Slumped in a corner, the former King Zarkon rested on his knees, but not by choice, she quickly realized. His arms were extended out away from him, shackled in rusted, grimy steel bands. They were held taut in such a way that he could neither sit nor rise and was forever kneeling.

The old man was not in good shape - his health had deteriorated and he appeared thinner than usual. His clothing was frayed and torn, even slashed open in some places. Blood stained some parts of his vestments, some dried, some fresh. A dark, frightening stain seeped into the ground beneath him. Allura suddenly realized that the pungent odor from the moisture on the floor came from a mixture of bodily fluids in varying states of decomposition. Her hands flew to her lips and caught the cry before it left her throat as her azure gaze absorbed the sight before her.

She stepped away shakily, her back bumping into Lotor's chest as he stepped around her, striding furiously toward his father.

"That's no way to speak to your queen," he hissed at the old man. Zarkon's head snapped up to look at his son in surprise before his golden, serpent-like gaze honed in on the pale, shocked woman standing in the center of the room.

"You brought your pet this time," he sneered at her, earning him a kick to the ribs from Lotor's knee. Allura's shoulders trembled. She looked away and turned in a slow circle, taking in the whole room. With the adjustment from her eyes in the dim light, she was able to see further into the darkness. Chains hung all around, manacles were bolted to walls and perhaps most terrifying of all was the stone table near Zarkon. Atop it rested an assortment of alarming instruments ranging from daggers and knives to whips and spikes.

"This is..." Her shaky whisper trailed off as Lotor gestured grandly around him.

"The Castle Doom dungeons, my beloved." His tone carried a lethal darkness with it as he watched the woman carefully.

 _He's measuring me,_ she thought, her gaze sliding back to his. She recognized the judgment coming from the man. He had tried to shelter and shield her from the very room she stood in, and in her own stubbornness she had demanded to see his secrets. He had relented in the end, and his eyes dared her to break in the wake of the horror. Allura instantly realized that he was watching for any sign of weakness - any justification that protecting her had been the better option all along. _If you ask for truth, you had better embrace it,_ she reminded herself.

The queen released a shaky exhale and gathered herself into a more calm and regal presentation. Folding her arms elegantly across her chest to hide her trembling hands, she glided across the room to where the former king knelt before the current one and took her place beside her husband. She cast her enemy an aloof look before turning to Lotor.

"Are these the matters you've been attending to that didn't concern me?" She nodded toward the table.

"Yes," he challenged her. Without taking his gaze from hers, he lifted the braided whip from the table and brought it cracking down upon his father's back. Allura continued to stare at him, unflinching as the sound echoed around the room.

"What are you trying to prove?" She whispered stoically, her back rigid. Her throat felt as tight as her skin felt cold. The only thing keeping her standing was pure, unadulterated determination. She kept her arms bundled across her chest, fighting every urge to run screaming from the room.

 _That's what he wants. That's what he's begging you to do._ She frowned suddenly. _Why?_

"That perhaps, just perhaps, there are things you shouldn't see." To make his point, he cracked the weapon across his father's shoulders once more, eliciting a groan from the aging man. To his immense satisfaction, Allura closed her eyes and pressed her lips together tightly as she exhaled.

"Are you trying to shock me?" Her voice wavered only slightly, hinting at the absurd amount of strength it took her to hold her ground. Bile conjured in her throat.

"This is what we are. This is what we do. This... is what you _married_. You wanted to know everything, you demanded no more secrets. Here it is," he grumbled. Another snap of the weapon on flesh sounded.

"Stop it!" Her hands unfolded quickly and clasped over her ears as her strength shattered.

Allura's voice echoed through the chamber, startling both men. Zarkon glanced up toward the once-stoic woman as Lotor relaxed. In a few, leisurely paces, he was standing in front of her.

She opened and slowly raised her eyes to him curiously. Without explanation, he gently lowered her hands from her ears and took her right hand in his. Within it, he placed the butt of the weapon and closed her fingers about the pommel.

"Revenge is yours to take, my sweet," he promised her gently. "It is your due and your right."

"I don't want-" She started to hand back the weapon when he stopped her. She froze, her breath caught in her lungs. His right hand wrapped around hers possessively, his left grasping her hip as he stared down into her eyes.

"Understandable on Arus. Even if not by blood, you're part Drule now, dear. By taking your dues, you level the balance. You rule with power, and if you don't extract that which is owed to you, respect will never be paid."

She frowned up at him, struggling to understand the world he lived in. Her wide eyes flitted between his and Zarkon before returning to Lotor.

"For some of us, it would be insulting _not_ to strike back. Our honor is everything," he said softly, his left hand releasing her hip to touch her cheek. Allura stared up at him for a moment longer before looking down to the whip in her hand. He gave her a comforting squeeze and released the weapon entirely into her control.

"That only breeds more hatred in the end," she protested softly. The monstrous implement looked staggeringly out of place as her slender digits curled around the grip.

"Do you think he will ever accept you? Do you think there will be something you can do to earn his favor? I've _tried._ I've been his _failure_ of a son my whole life - he despises everyone but himself. He is _nothing_ without his crown."

"I..." She trailed off, torn as her fingers flexed around the handle. Her other hand reached to touch the flail end when he grasped her wrist to stop her.

"Nothing that has ever graced that should ever be touched by you… You can take his amends for your father, you know," he added. He released her wrist as she dropped her hand back to her side.

"You... you mean revenge..." She shook her head once, realizing what he was saying. "If you truly intended that, it would mean a sword through his heart, not a whip to the back," she explained, setting the weapon back down on the table. In response, Lotor placed the slender grip of a rapier in her palm.

"That can also be arranged," he murmured softly in her ear, hovering directly behind her. His gloved hands came to rest on her shoulders and he gently turned her to face Zarkon. "It's all yours for the taking."

She stared openly at the sword trembling in her hand and raised her eyes to the man who slaughtered her family, burned her home and stole her subjects into slavery. A strange fire bubbled in her breast and ignited her anger. She felt entranced by the darkness around her, as if any act she committed would be buried deep within the dungeon, even out of reach of her own conscience.

Lotor watched the woman carefully as she approached the fallen king and simply stared down at his humbled form. Silence heavier than lead fell upon the trio as she studied him.

"Well," he growled out gruffly, frustrated by the girl's stillness. "End it, then," Zarkon challenged her.

The _tink_ of metal sounded as Allura placed the tip of the sword on the ground. Bracing against the hilt, she knelt to the floor, squatting to Zarkon's eye level, the sword in front of her for balance. Her knee never touched the earth, and she balanced purely on the strength of her thighs. Her gown brushed the filth and slime around her and she stayed very quiet, watching the man who inspired so many nightmares in her youth.

Allura reveled in the moment; in her ablility to stare her most violent, waking nightmare in the eye for the first time. She felt no fear. The strange feeling of dominance flourished through her. Silence dragged on, the only noise in the large, stone room was a shift in Lotor's weight behind her and a gentle rattle of chains in the background.

Seconds became minutes as her eyes trailed over his face, his body, mesmerizing every line, every wound, every muscle. Her eyes landed on his right hand – the same collection of bones, tendons and muscles that had stolen her father; the same aggregation that had nearly choked the very life from her. After what felt like eternity, Allura finally tilted her head to the side, a frown touching at her lips.

"No," she said simply. Zarkon's eyes narrowed lethally on her and she only smiled weakly in response.

"Allura, it's-"

"I know, Lotor. I know. You've made that clear," she said as he spoke up from behind her. Her eyes stayed fixed on the man before her. Her eyes shimmered as she rapidly calculated her next move.

"What's your game, girl?" The hoarse whisper was intended to be dangerous, but it only sounded weak.

"If extracting dues is part of the rules of your court, so be it. I will play by those rules. But I do not think it will be the way you are expecting me to," she paused as Zarkon's brow raised curiously, his eyes never leaving hers. When neither Drule spoke, she continued.

"I'm going to do something much, much worse... if I understand you correctly," she whispered, startling both son and father.

"Allura," Lotor questioned her, stepping closer with concern. The queen just smiled openly at the prisoner. In a slow movement, she slid toward him, remaining in her crouch at his eye level. She still balanced against the sword, but her left hand left the hilt. She flexed her hand and paused.

The queen closed her eyes with a deep exhale, calming her nerves.

With ethereal grace and undiluted determination, she opened them again. Never breaking eye contact with Zarkon, she reached out and touched his cheek in a painfully gentle gesture.

" _I forgive you_ ," she whispered simply with utter reverence. Honesty and earnestness reverberated in her gaze as she stared the once-fearsome king down. After a moment had passed, the only sound in the room was the clatter of iron when the blade fell to the floor as rose to her feet, stepping back from him. She paused before Lotor and regarded him carefully. His expression was a flash of confusion, shock and fascination. "You know, this is... unexpected," she said thoughtfully, gesturing to the room.

"What do you mean," he guarded his expression suddenly.

"This is probably the single more terrifying place for me. At least... it was in very recent history. I now stand here. I... I command it. I... you've given me courage, Lotor," she reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear shyly. "I do not have the nightmares I used to, I do not... I do not _fear_ the demons in the darkness any longer."

She gasped when his hands caught her jaw and pulled her in close, crushing his lips against hers. Allura giggled against him when Zarkon made a gagging noise in the background.

"Please kill me," he muttered bitterly.

She broke the kiss and stepped back, her palms on his chest.

"I'm going to return to our chambers and bathe. I do not wish to linger here, the darkness... it doesn't sit well with me," she explained.

"I would imagine not," he murmured.

"Anyway, what next with him then?" She pointed to Zarkon, but her eyes never left Lotor. The king just groaned.

"You... Oh, Allura. You complicate things so beautifully," he sighed.

"What did I do? I took my... dues, as you put them. What's left?" She tilted her head to the side curiously.

"Don't worry about it," he muttered dismissively. He started to exhale, but his breath was caught when he saw her stark expression.

"I know that I don't understand. I know-"

"I know," he murmured. "We just... finished talking about that and here I am trying to make your life as easy as possible by taking care of everything for you."

"Since when did you think I wanted an easy life? I've spent the last few years flying a giant robot lion in countless battles against you. Against both of you," she gestured to Zarkon before looking back to her husband. "What... what is it that you think that I want?" When Lotor stayed silent, Allura's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"You promised I wouldn't be a prize on a shelf. Things go on shelves when they're too fragile to be touched, when they're too easily broken... when they're meant to just be looked upon and gather dust until they _die_. Is that what you take me for?"

"Not in the least."

"Then... elaborate. What more is left, what... what happens now? What... cultural thing is going on in this room that I can't see?" Allura felt her lips twitch in a slight smile at Lotor's exasperated sigh of defeat.

"When he attacked you, when he... attempted... to take your life, two debts were taken," he began slowly, tossing his father a lethal look. "One, of course, was against you. He also made one against me," he explained. Allura stayed thoughtfully silent. "He knowingly, willingly and likely quite gleefully, disobeyed a direct mandate. So, in reality, it's threefold. You, the Crown, and myself. He disobeyed an order and he dishonored me by striking my queen," he finished.

"So when is his debt paid to you?" She nodded back toward the ailing man, catching Lotor's line of thinking quicker than he anticipated. He stared at her oddly for a moment.

"One is paid. One could consider the strike against the Crown paid for with his time in here."

Allura scooted closer to the man and tried to coax the rest of the information out of him.

"And then what about the one against your honor?"

"That one is not yet complete. It would take-" He froze as Allura's eyes widened, encouraged by the information.

"Yes...?"

"A duel in the coliseum," he finished quietly. "Don't look at me like that!"

"Like what?" She smiled innocently.

"You want me to fight him?"

"I never said that, I only asked what was keeping him down here. As I understand it, the part that concerns me is done. The rest is up to you. …thank you for sharing," she added genuinely. "But... I think I truly will take leave of this place now." She nodded to Zarkon once and then tossed her husband a waifish look before taking to the spiraling stairs.

"She's certainly stronger than I ever gave her credit for," the old man commented dryly. Lotor shot him a dangerous look before gathering up all the implements that had been on the table, including the rapier on the ground. After locking them away, Lotor withdrew his lazon sword and eyed the man dangerously.

Zarkon's eyes glanced between the sword and his son warily.

"My son..."

Without warning, Lotor slashed through the air. The chain links binding the man melted and shattered where the saber touched them. Zarkon pitched forward into the sludge on the ground and just grunted, not bothering to pick himself up. His dignity had long been lost. The reprieve from the manacles was enough.

"Indeed she is," Lotor said dangerously. "...Food will be brought down to you in a while. I highly suggest you do not _ever_ forget what happened here," he added, turning and leaving the dungeon, pulling the iron door closed behind him.

* * *

 **Yay more! Feedback is always welcome! More on the way!**


	16. Pervasion

**Chapter 16 - Pervasion**

* * *

Lotor strode into the bedchambers, pausing at the sight of his bride. Allura stilled in her actions as she glanced to him.

Her hands and the bathtowel she clutched fell to her lap, her shower-damped hair still freefalling down her back.

"Thank you, for sharing that with me," she murmured after a moment. The pink and white of her gown glittered in stark contrast to the rest of the room.

He just sighed in response.

"I need to shower, as well," he explained, disappearing into the bathroom. She watched him disappear behind the door, leaving her to finish drying her hair before the vanity.

Allura chewed on her lip thoughtfully.

Her emotions flitted from sickened to honored and back again. She felt a sense of pride and satisfaction in the fact he had undone his guard to show her what he had been hiding. By the same token, she felt a degree of horror at just what that secret was.

 _How can a son do that to his father?_

She found herself constantly struggling to understand the man – and his entire culture. Harm to one's own family was unheard of for an Arusian, but even Allura couldn't deny that the way they regarded their respective fathers was intrinsically, fundamentally opposite.

"I loved mine, more than the stars love the sky," she whispered to herself as she began to comb her damp hair out. She frowned. In Lotor's case, it was the reverse. Father and Son were enemies. Son saw Father as a hurdle or a barrier to overcome; an obstacle to destroy. Father viewed Son, in turn, as a threat. "How very foreign your culture is, my new husband," she whispered softly.

"What of me?"

Her eyes snapped around to the wet, towel-clad warrior standing in the doorway. She blushed brilliantly and shook her head once.

"Just… processing how different we are."

"We aren't that different, you know," he admonished, walking toward the dresser for fresh clothing.

Allura naively averted her gaze as he changed in front of her.

"Surely you must admit, we are like night and day," she pressed.

Lotor slid leggings past his thighs and fastened a clean tunic over himself before adding the royal accessories. He paused and looked to her intently.

"Would you also say that sun and moon are opposites?"

"Of course! Don't you think?" She glanced to him curiously.

"Not at all. On the contrary, I think it's a terrible analogy. Firstly, they both share the same sky. Secondly, the moon merely reflects the sun's radiance. It's a hollow impersonation. To hold it on par with the star is an insult." Allura's eyes widened at his observation, but he continued, unabated.

"Now. It takes two elements to fuse, Allura. For a star to burn brightly – to grant life, to grant heat… it takes two compounds coming together in a centralized core. Their combination, their… aggregation… produces all the ingredients needed to sustain an entire planet – even a star system. _That_ is worthy of recognition. Ignore the paltry satellite with its reflective surface, and instead respect the elements that traversed the universe simply to come together in a union to make something completely _new_."

Allura stared, her heart skipping a beat as he watched her intently. She swallowed nervously.

Lotor shrugged, breaking the moment of silence and tossed his damp locks over his back carelessly.

"I…" She paused, chewing on her lip as she eyed his shimmering hair in the dim room.

He stalked about, pausing to snatch up his boots from the ground, easing down onto the edge of the bed to tug them on.

"Not so different," she murmured. Her fingers tightened around the ornate comb she was holding and rose from the vanity.

Her feet quietly padded across the floor to him and his gaze snapped up at the sound of her approach. He paused in his ministrations, letting the boots fall back to the floor. A slender eyebrow quirked in her direction as Allura took a seat beside him on the bed before sliding demurely behind him, tucking her legs beneath her.

Lotor stiffened when her fingers brushed his back and Allura began to lightly comb through the ends of his wet hair, alternating between the ornament and her gentle fingers.

"You can tell me to stop if you like," she murmured in his brisk silence.

"Gods no," he murmured hoarsely. She paused, a slight blush touching her cheeks at the rough words before continuing.

With patience and practice, Allura quietly made her way up his long hair, paying close attention to every little knot, every stray strand, soothing them all back into their proper place with a painful attention to detail.

Lotor felt his eyelids drape shut at the actions, and he prayed to whatever divine being would hear him that it would never stop. Allura's gentle touches were nothing he had ever experienced before. Light and delicate, kind and often shy – they frequently stunned him with their subtle intimacy. While he had never been want for a female's touch, something inherently primal and deeper came from it being _hers._

Allura sat curled behind him of her own volition – she had even willingly approached and initiated the physical contact. _She's…_ He paused in his thoughts. 'Servicing' was the word that came to mind most easily, but it did not capture the reverence and kindness that she gifted him with the act. He simply exhaled, surrendering to the delight of her fingers lacing through his hair.

"The Pit of Skulls."

Her words shattered his trance and he blinked at the ceiling, struggling to come back to reality as she continued to brush her way up his hair.

"What," he rasped out, his voice struggling to take purchase when her fingers accidentally brushed the back of his ear.

"Blue Lion," she continued quietly. "I used a particle scattering algorithm to get past the atmosphere, and I buried Blue Lion underneath the Pit of Skulls so she wouldn't be seen. It gave me underground access to the castle and… well… what I had hoped would be a discreet escape route with Romelle."

He exhaled, realizing what she was saying.

"You told me," he murmured.

"Well, since you've stopped keeping secrets from me, I decided I probably should practice what I preach," she murmured with a smile, finishing with his hair.

He turned to face her as she slid off the bed and started back toward the vanity.

"Wait," he commanded, catching her wrist. Her eyes flashed to his warily.

"Let me," he continued, holding out his palm for the comb. She glanced down to the ornament in her hand and realized what he was asking.

"Oh, you don't need to, I already-"

"I _want_ to," he insisted, his eyes glittering. Allura swallowed nervously but allowed him to pull her back toward him. He slid back on the bed several inches and turned her around, settling her hips comfortably between his thighs when she offered little protest.

His hand lazily snaked along the curve of her wrist and to her palm, deftly capturing the marbled comb from her fingertips, allowing as much of his hand to touch hers in the process as she willingly relinquished her hold.

Allura blushed, feeling the muscles around and behind her. Her hands curled together nervously in her lap. Even with all the time she spent around the man, having him physically close to her still put her on edge. Admittedly, the flutter of her heart and the tint to her cheeks hinted that it wasn't fear he stirred in her currently.

His muscles flexed on either side of her thighs, causing a catch in her throat. She exhaled, trying to relax. Just as she forced her body into a more quiescent state, sparks thrummed through her without warning when he brushed his bare fingers through her hair lightly. Her heart hammered into overdrive when his nails grazed her throat while drawing down the locks from over her shoulder.

Allura was barely aware of the fact he was working the comb through the ends of her hair, too consumed by the scent and feel of him surrounding her. She stayed dutifully still, attempting to will herself to be equally calm, but to little avail.

"You're tense," he murmured in her ear, causing a shiver to ripple down her spine and a gasp to escape her lips.

"You're close," she whispered back in response. He said nothing, but continued to take his time touching, smoothing and brushing out her sun-spun mane. Every few strokes through her hair, he allowed his fingers to draw down her back, touching her warm skin through the fabric of her dress.

With powerful thighs caging her legs and a wall of steel muscle at her back, Allura found herself feeling small in a very feminine way that caught her completely by surprise. _I've always had to be so strong for everyone else…_ She blushed brightly, almost ashamed at the security and sanctuary she allowed herself to feel at his touch.

Fire ripped through her core and flooded her thighs when he drew her hair back away from her ear and leaned in, pressing his lips against her throat. She choked on the still-foreign emotion he ignited in her most primal places.

"It's safe to want, Allura," he murmured against her ear. His right hand still snaked gently through her hair while his left stroked from her thigh to her waist.

"It's safe to let go," he continued, drawing his hand fully up her side. Despite her sense of propriety and duty, she found herself melting back against him with an exhale.

Lotor released her hair and brushed over her cheek as her head leaned back, resting against his shoulder. Allura's eyes draped closed and she allowed the entirety of his form to take possession with his chest to her back, his legs flanking hers, his palm boldly caressing her chest and his cheek pressed to hers.

 _Ice._

Allura's eyes snapped open and her body went rigid with little warning. Frost flooded her veins and the soft, warm emotions blooming within her vanished entirely.

Lotor stilled, sensing the change in her.

"What is it?" He released his grasp on her as she withdrew from his embrace. Standing weakly on her feet, she turned to look at him, an expression of confusion etched into her features.

"Allura?" He re-articulated his question with more concern.

"I don't understand," she said after a moment, shaking her head. Her arms crossed protectively over her chest as she regarded him in his seated position. He made no move to close the distance or reclaim her; he simply watched with caution.

"It's natural to feel-" She cut him off with another shake of her head, her arms tightening around her torso as she backed away cautiously.

"That same hand," she murmured, nodding to his right palm. He glanced down to it in confusion before looking back to her hardened features. "It's the same one you struck your father with. _Hurt_ him with. And yet…"

Lotor grew still as he realized what she was recalling. The lines in his face hardened, but he said nothing.

"How can you do both?" Her lips pressed together thinly. "How can you be so… so cruel to him and yet… not with me?"

"Because you are two _completely_ different people," he said firmly.

"Do you hate him?"

"Allura," he started, pausing as he considered her words carefully. "…No, I don't think that I do."

"Do you love him?"

"Not at all."

He frowned as a heavy silence filled the room and Allura finally exhaled.

"I can't say I despise you for it, but I do begrudge you that," she admitted with a blush. "I loved my father very much and would give my soul to have him alive again. You have yours and you do… _that_ to him," she murmured darkly. "But, it is as you said. It's not fair to judge two different people by the same metric. Alfor and Zarkon are nothing alike."

"Come back," he encouraged her gently, extending his palm toward her. Instead, she fixed him with a sad gaze.

"Why have you never been that cruel to me?"

Lotor looked as stunned as if she had physically struck him.

"Why would you think I could ever be?"

Allura only frowned in response.

"What's stopping you?"

His gaping, stunned expression only grew blanker as her unfathomable words.

"You're the woman I love, Allura!"

"I'm the woman you desire," she corrected carefully, watching him.

"Because I love you!"

"You've only ever taken," she began,easing herself into the chair by the vanity, her eyes never leaving him. "You built this marriage on a barter – and a threat. Those aren't things you do to someone you love. Those are things you do to someone you want."

"Allura," he began, still reeling from her sudden change from warm and pliable to frigid and stoic.

"If your own blood and family can drive you to be that way with them, what happens when you tire of me? What happens if…" She paused, releasing a deep breath to try and control her panic. "Someday you may wake up and find I'm not everything you so desperately coveted. Someday you may even hate me the way you hate your father. …I think… I'm… I'm scared of you," she admitted softly.

"Allura, I could never-"

"That's easy to say now. This is still new for you. This… _item_ you have been trying to _purchase_ since we first met, you finally have. Of course it's still fascinating. But what happens when things get difficult? What happens in a year when we still have the same struggles? What about in five years when new ones come up? We are… very, very different people. We are going to struggle. What happens to me when… when you finally grow tired of that?"

"In five years…" He trailed off, the thrilling realization that she was truly his for the rest of his life settling in.

"Of course. I gave you my word, Lotor. Unless you break your end of our agreement, I will be here. I said I would, and my word is my honor. To both me and my people, honor is everything. Without honor, without integrity, words become worthless. This is permanent for me, in my eyes. I… I do not break vows. It's why I have made so very, very few in my lifetime, because they are worth more than my own life to me," she explained softly.

Lotor stayed quiet, watching the fearsome –and fearful – woman with a new appreciation.

"I have…" She paused, considering her words carefully, weighing how much she wanted to share with the warlord. "I didn't just agree to marry you, Lotor," she began, her eyes sliding to his. The frozen blue struck him deep before she blinked slowly and turned them away from him. "Marriage is more than that to me. I gave you my future. In exchange for the lives of everyone I serve and care for, I have given you my most precious possession. I have surrendered the ability to govern how I end my days. I have given my freedom. You receive a... a _prize_ … a wife – I receive a death sentence. I hope you can understand my… concerns. Your capacity for sudden violence frightens me somewhat, as I'd prefer to have my blood spilled across the floor in a single blow than end up in a similar position as your father, with the process drawn out… indefinitely."

"Never."

She laughed darkly without warning, surprising him once more.

"What happens when I grow old?" She just shook her head, waving off his displeasure. She turned away, facing the mirror once more. Her eyes flashed to him in the reflective glass when she heard the mattress shift.

She bit down on her lip nervously as he came to stand behind her, placing his palms on her shoulders before leaning over to stare into her eyes through the mirror.

"Allura. You are far, far more than any _trophy_ or simple acquisition."

She tilted her head sideways when he pressed his lips to her temple. She frowned at the strange image before her. Worried lines creased her eyes, her cheekbones taut with tension and her skin paler than she was used to. The emperor of the Drule Empire leaned over her, encompassing her. The dark bedroom provided the surreal backdrop, completing the reflection Allura had never believed she would ever see.

"It's real," she whispered quietly, touching the midnight shawl folded on the vanity before her. Breaking her trance, she turned her head to look to the man who had stolen her future, raising her eyes gently as he allowed a small gap between them.

"Why do you cry," he murmured, reaching to brush aside the tears that budded in the corners of her eyes. Allura blinked; not even realizing they had formed.

"I… I think I'm sad," she replied, her bottom lip trembling. "…and scared."

"Don't be." His voice held the normal commanding tone, but the volume was soft and gentle. Carefully he leaned in and pressed his lips against hers. He stilled when her lip continued to tremble when she sobbed silently against him.

Lotor released a frustrated exhale.

"I should have never taken you to the dungeons," he realized.

"No." Allura was quick to disagree, inhaling deeply to try and calm the erratic fear before he changed his mind on open honesty. "No, it was correct. At least…" She paused to sniff. "I would rather know than not."

"And look how you're handling it," he nearly growled, touching her chin to tilt her eyes to him. She obliged him, raising her tear-laden lashes. His lips pressed together thinly.

"I know. I'm… so sorry. I'm… very, very scared. And uncertain… But I would rather know. It might take a little more time for me to adjust… but I…" She inhaled sharply, her breath shuddering at the effort. "And I… I want to be able to tell you that I am not okay… I don't want… to hide it," she whispered.

"Tell me," he urged gently. "Why is it you don't believe me when I say I will never harm you?"

She blinked, a single tear rushing down her cheek.

"Because you have before."

"Not like-"

"No, not ever like that," she admitted, reflecting on the intentional cruelty he delivered to his father. "I think… I don't know, Lotor. Family is… precious to me. Something to be protected. Cherished. I have none of mine left. I think for me… it's hard to understand how if you're… capable of that with yours… and you wouldn't be with me, when he is blood and I am not. I think that is where my mind stalls. I think… I can come to understand it with a little time."

"Do you at least trust me?"

Allura stared up into his eyes silently for a moment. She reached into the recesses of her mind and soul, seeking how she truly felt about his question, determined to give him the most honest answer she could. Her eyes searched his as a single realization struck her.

 _I am not an obstacle for him to overcome._

"Yes, I do."

His eyelids draped closed in relief before opening once more. As his hands slid down her shoulders to her own palms, he guided her up from the chair, gently leading her back toward the bed.

She hesitated briefly before following him. Halfway across the floor, she withdrew her palms from his hands before recapturing one of his hands between both of hers. His eyes widened at the subtle gesture before sitting down on the edge of the mattress and looking back to her.

Lotor did not pull her down to join him; he instead allowed her the space to make her own moves.

Allura came to stand in front of him, her fingers tightening around his hand shyly. She chewed on her bottom lip, watching him as he stared up at her lazily. Delicately, he withdrew his hand from hers and leaned back into the sheets, his feet still planted on the ground.

Allura studied his reclined frame from where she stood before a twitch at her lips broke the impassive shield she wore.

"You're going to mess up your hair," she murmured, eyeing the way the silvered locks spiraled around him.

"I can't say I'd be troubled if you needed to brush it out once more," he replied, a grin touching at his lips when a blush colored her cheeks. She stepped forward, coming to stand between his knees. He casually folded his arms behind his head, content to watch the timid woman.

Allura moved first, closing the distance between them completely as she joined him on the bed. She placed a knee on either side of his hips, startling them both with her boldness. Despite the layers of clothing between them, the gesture was intrinsically intimate as she settled into position, watching him closely. Her skin flushed red from her own curiosity, but Lotor stayed politely silent and painfully still.

She hesitated before reaching forward and carefully removing the crimson drape that adorned his shoulders. With reverence, she folded the near-sacred garment and set it aside before turning her eyes back to him.

"Are you sure Haggar hasn't given you any of that blasted potion?" His voice was tight and the whisper sounded strained. Every muscle in his body was tensed beneath her gentle body.

"I'm certain," she replied shyly, settling back onto her hips.

They sat in quiet silence for a moment, the king too afraid to move and frighten the woman off.

"Was there anything else you wanted to remove…?" He questioned her carefully, hiding the fierce pang of delight that flooded his system when she turned red.

Unable to restrain himself, he deftly unfolded his arms from behind his head and carefully reached for her. His palms closed around her waist and he guided her forward. With only the slightest reticence, she allowed him the control and placed her palms on either side of his face, her frame leaning over so close that their noses nearly touched.

"I'm not an obstacle," she murmured aloud as he brushed his lips against hers, hoping to encourage further action on her part. He felt her lips curl slightly against his at the gesture.

"I don't know what that's in reference to," he replied carefully, struggling to maintain coherency as her scent flooded him. "But no, you most certainly are not."

A shiver ran down his spine as her fingers brushed his hair back from his face. She leaned back slightly to look more closely at the utterly lethal man lying quiescently beneath her.

"Magnificent," he murmured appreciatively, staring up into her eyes. His hands slid up from her hips to her collarbone, delicately sliding the dress down her shoulders.

"No," she stopped him. She waited, breath held, to see if he would press his agenda.

He did not.

Lotor released his touch on her completely and folded his hands on top of his chest, watching her curiously. She did not pull away nor move off of him.

"Yes, my dear?" He inquired politely after several seconds of heated silence flooded between them. Allura averted her gaze from him in embarrassment.

"The… the times that we have…" She blinked, unable to finish the sentence, her skin redder than the right arm of Voltron.

"Lain together," he offered quietly at her hesitance.

"Yes," she agreed, her eyes fixed on something off to the side, unable to make contact with him. "It has been... it has at least felt… a little… one-sided," she hedged. The king remained quiet, his eyes studying what features of hers he could see, only marginally frustrated that she wouldn't look to him.

"I… you seem to know everything. I… do not."

She jumped slightly when she felt his hand brush through her hair. He stilled briefly before doing it again, allowing the golden satin pooling over her shoulder to slide between his fingers. He remained silently observant throughout her monologue, carefully watching as she grasped for her words amidst her emotions.

"I… I think that… that perhaps that should change. I… I believe that I… I would like to look upon you," she said at last. "Oh stars," she murmured, shifting her weight on him suddenly.

"It's alright," he appeased quickly, looking almost chagrined.

"What-" His earthy chuckle cut off her naïve question.

"I just found that idea _extremely_ enticing," he explained, continuing to draw his hand through her hair over her shoulder as her eyes returned to him. "By the gods, Allura, do as you like."

* * *

 **So this chapter took a while - because I did a thing and wrote more. Quite a bit more. (Yes, I know it's safe to post it here. There's... something to me about preserving the ability to avoid explicit content if you so want. So that's why I move it elsewhere. Makes it easier to just keep reading if you don't actually want to see it.) That being said, if you do, here's the addendum:** **crystalrebellion - deviantart -** **com/art/Hades-Covenant-Chapter-16-Addendum-735049273**

 **(Only the dashes around DA need to be replaced with . and you're good.)**

 **Or find Crystal Rebellion on DeviantArt, you'll get there. :)**

 **Comments and Critiques are always welcome, thank you for reading!**


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